The Ghost and the Darkness
by Kirsdarkenvar
Summary: Sasuke and Naruto become friends at a young age, but will Naruto's paranoia and mental instability draw Sasuke down into madness, or will Sasuke's own demons bring them both into the dark? Not yaoi
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer: Naruto doesn't belong to Kirsdarkenvar**

**The Ghost and the Darkness**

Chapter 1

He was loath to admit that every moment spent in Naruto's apartment was always a trial; the dreary silence, the cleanser-like atmosphere. But worse, the despair and misery that clogged the lungs and coated the tongue. He was always grateful to leave, but the despair always seemed to ruin the rest of the day and kept him from sleeping.

Sarutobi grunted and berated himself for hesitating. Lifting a wrinkled hand, he knocked on the door, grimacing at how it echoed throughout the empty hall. No one lived on this floor, not since the attack of the Nine Tailed Fox Demon. Only one person lived here, and yet all signs pointed to vacancy.

When no one answered the door, which he never did- for more valid reasons, Sarutobi sighed and let himself in with his copy of the key, bracing himself for another depressing session with Yondaime's fading Legacy.

The apartment was spotless, as usual, since the child went over every surface daily with a mechanical fervor that always made him uneasy. He bypassed the living room altogether and headed for the bedroom, Naruto's dwelling. His eyes fell briefly on the heavy curtains that covered the window, catching a glimpse of the newspaper glued to the glass. The uneasiness increased. The newspaper hadn't been there last week.

"Naruto?" he called gently before opening the bedroom door. The door quickly met resistance and something tumbled with the sound of paper. Books.

Sarutobi squeezed through the door, knowing he would not receive any help. Besides, the room seemed almost unoccupied but for the books that lined the walls in neat orderly piles, perhaps sorted by title or author. Most of the books he had given to him when he found that he enjoyed- no- Naruto did not _enjoy _things.

His eyes fell on the wrinkle free bed and uncluttered dressers; the heavily draped window also sported newspaper. A sniff attracted his attention.

Naruto was crouched in a corner, pale and sickly, red-rimmed eyes and bony body. He was crouched over a manual, adorned in his favorite over-large sweater and dark gray pants. The hood to the sweater was pulled up, covering the child's pale lanky yellow hair. Pale eyelashes framed dull blue eyes, glassy and often filled with tears.

Whether he was aware of Sarutobi's presence would have been questionable, but Uzumaki always did his best to ignore the aging Hokage.

"Hello Naruto," he greeted, trying to draw the child out of his cocoon. The seven year old glanced up at him, then back down at the manual. He had stopped reading fiction all together since all the happy ever after's made him cry. The Hokage searched the page for a title and found one at the top.

How to Problem Solve Quantum Mechanics 

Whether Naruto understood what he was reading was curious, but he was never one to converse with others and had many phobias for that.

"Naruto?" he asked politely. "Why is there newspaper pages pasted to your windows?"

Uzumaki's eyes flickered to the window briefly before the broken voice whispered, "To keep them from watching." His shoulders hunched and tears filled his dull eyes. "They're always watching."

Sarutobi swallowed and slumped down on the bed. Was Naruto now showing signs of paranoid schizophrenia, or were the villagers actually spying on him?

Uzumaki Naruto was living a life Sarutobi would have killed to improve. Not once had he seen the youth smile, or show anything remotely close to joy or happiness. When Naruto had been an infant his caretakers rarely touched him or showed affection. Naruto did not understand those things, and as a result, did not like to be touched. By the time he could walk, he was mostly left alone, and had begun to venture out in the village. This quickly stopped when several angry villagers had beaten him. Naruto was a quick learner, and stopped coming out of his apartment during the day. He was quick to discover that people traveled less during the night and were often too busy to stare or wonder at a small boy. He had even started wearing the large gray sweater with the overbearing hood to hide his features. But there was only so much of Konoha to ogle, and when Naruto had discovered all the nooks and crannies of the village, he ventured out less and less.

Once, out of pure curiosity, Sarutobi had sent a small monkey to catalogue a day in the life of Uzumaki, and after hearing its contents, had decided that once a week, on a Sunday, he would spend time with Naruto. Naruto's day did not start by waking up in the morning, because apparently Naruto did not sleep at night. But around seven in the morning, Naruto would dig out cleaning supplies from under the kitchen sink and proceed to wipe down every surface in the apartment, starting with the counters and ending with the floors. The monkey had had been adamant about _every_ surface,_ including_ the walls and ceilingThis, the monkey claimed, proceeded for five hours straight with no stops for drinks or even bathroom breaks. The almost absolute silence of the ordeal had almost driven the monkey mad. It had complained about Naruto's mechanical strokes as he scrubbed the same spot on the kitchen floor, eyes said to be vacant.

The whole ordeal smelled of some kind of obsessive compulsive disorder, and it solved the mystery as to why Naruto's apartment made him feel like he was intruding upon perfection.

Next, the monkey claimed, Naruto would crouch in the shower for an hour and let the water beat upon his pale skin. The monkey claimed there was very little movement involved. The rest of the day was spent reading. At night, the boy would leave the apartment and slink along the quiet streets. Sometimes, the monkey said, he would cry and wander, others he would crouch behind dumpsters and watch people hurry by. He would do this for a few hours before slinking back home and rock in a corner, cry, or stare off into space. Oh, and occasionally, as if to spice things up, he would have moments where he would fall asleep only to jolt awake as if someone had sent several bolts of electricity through him. This would happen off and on throughout the night.

After three days of watching, the monkey had claimed that to preserve his own sanity, he had fled.

So when had Naruto eaten? He had asked, and the monkey had seemed thoughtful before stating that not once had he seen the boy eat. He then told him how skeletal the boy's body was.

"Have you eaten today?" Sarutobi asked, wondering if Naruto would reply. He provided Naruto with enough funds to live comfortably, but on further investigation found that most of it was usually spent on bleach and detergent.

"Yes Hokage," Naruto said in his deadpanned voice, and produced a candy bar wrapper from his pocket. He did not look at the Sandaime, who shook his head in chagrin.

"That's not enough for a growing boy Naruto. You need to eat three square meals for a healthy diet."

Naruto lifted his gaze and leveled it on the old man. His skin was sickly due to the lack of proper nutrients, his hair hung limp and lifeless, so much unlike his father's. Eyes were puffy and red-rimmed due to tears and insomnia. And of course, he looked like the poster child to one of those _Help Feed Our Children _ads.

No, Naruto was not enjoying life, and if he didn't find something to interest the boy, he feared…

Well, he wasn't sure what it was that he feared, but he knew that at least for once, he would like to see something other than despair or lifelessness in the boy's eyes. It was too sad- too unnatural. The eyes were still on him, perhaps waiting for him to say more, so he said what he usually said.

"Why don't we go out and get something to eat." It almost seemed routine to ask, and he waited for the usual cryptic reply.

"No, they will probly' poison me," and then he would stare at the walls- or in this case, return to the book.

Sarutobi was doing his best not to institutionalize Naruto, and hadn't yet gotten to the point where he had to threaten the child with it, but he realized he had just hit that point. Naruto's health was deteriorating and he could not- would not stand by and allow him to do these things to himself.

"You're leaving me with very little choices, my boy," he muttered, but Naruto seemed to have forgotten his presence again. Sarutobi sat for a time before sighing and getting to his feet. He pulled out a small packaged sandwich and stood before the crouching child who continued to ignore him. Crouching down before him, Sarutobi closed the book and placed the sandwich on top of it. He then took hold of Naruto's bony face, inwardly grimacing at how cold the flesh was. He knew Naruto hated to be touched, but he had an annoying habit of ignoring the pink elephant in the room, and this was the only way for him to catch Naruto's undivided attention. "Listen to me Naruto," he whispered and watched as the dull blue eyes drilled into his own. "I want you to eat this sandwich," he picked it up and held it in sight. "And I want you to eat _all_ of it. Look at the sandwich Naruto," he said in his most authorative voice when Naruto only stared at him. The blue eyes flickered over to the sandwich but returned to his own. He hated using this voice on children, but it was the only one Naruto paid attention to. "I want you to start eating more. If you don't, I'm going to have to take measures you won't like. Do you understand?"

Naruto's eyes became glassy with unshed tears and Sarutobi's heart broke as they fell down the whiskered cheeks and on his fingers. How he hated threatening Naruto, especially when the child took all threats seriously, thanks to the potentially homicidal villagers.

"Don't cry," Sarutobi whispered and wiped the boy's cheeks with his fingers. "I don't want to make you sad Naruto. I just want you to be happy and well." He put the sandwich in Naruto's small bony hands and stood up. "I'll be back next week okay?"

Naruto's eyes had dropped to the sandwich that sat in his hands and made no reply. The Sandaime sighed and left the apartment with the taste of cleanser coating the back of his tongue.

------------------------

It was three am, when Naruto dared to venture out of his apartment. Lately Konoha had been on edge for the last two months or so. It had something to do with a massacre of a clan; Naruto didn't read the papers, he only used them to cover his windows. There was laughter in his head, multi-voiced, some loud and deep, some breathy and feminine, and Naruto gave a bewildered start, flinching, eyes darting around. He didn't know what was so funny, but then, _They_ laughed all the time. It wasn't nice laughter though, he wasn't sure if _They_ were capable of niceness.

Naruto weaved in and out of the shadows, eyes darting at the apartments and shops that lined the streets. At any moment, he could be attacked by one of the villagers. Naruto rubbed his puffy eyes and headed for the park. It was his favorite place outside of his apartment, but only in the wee hours of the morning, for no one would be there. Naruto headed for one of the swings and sat down, his body feeling leaden. Making sure his head was down and hood covering most of his face, he allowed the swing to move.

----------------------------------

Sasuke sat in the embrace of his blankets, body trembling in the silence; he would never get used to the deadness of the compound. Pained black eyes darted to the clock and saw that it was a quarter to three. He pulled the blankets over his head and shut his eyes tightly until they hurt. The images of his family, mother, father, cousins, aunt and uncles, all lying motionless on the ground kept running through his head. And HIM, _him_ with his cold eyes, _him_ with that frozen face. Sasuke choked on the memory, throwing off his blankets and jumping off the bed. He couldn't stand to be here anymore. Pulling off his pajamas, he donned a blue shirt and black pants, putting on his blue sandals. He ran from the compound, the silence that seemed never ending, and into the streets of Konoha.

He glanced about as he strolled, eyes falling on the occasional villager rushing home, or some older kid sneaking a cigarette. If they had a home and went, would their parents be waiting up for them?

Sasuke blinked rapidly and hurried along until he came to the village park and decided to enter. He passed the jungle gym bars and hovered near the sandbox, swooshing the sand with his foot, sniffing and telling himself it was because of the cold. Shinobi- or at least Shinobi to be- did not cry. Sasuke glanced up and noticed a small figure sitting on one of the swings. Sasuke squinted, trying to see in the dark, but all he could see was what looked like a white or grey hoodie. Vaguely curious, and wanting to take his mind off of dark matters, Sasuke moved from the sandbox and approached the unoccupied swing next to the kid. He saw the body stiffen, but the kid kept his or her head down, shoulders hunched as if against a cold wind

Sasuke sat down on the swing, but did not move, instead focusing on the Hokage monument. It wasn't near cold yet, it being near the end of September. This was near the time his father liked to sit out on the wide porch and smoke his pipe, and his mother would sip tea in her delicate cups.

Was it his fault? Was it something he did that made his brother kill everyone except him? Did he get on his nerves- or ask too much of him? Was that why his family had been taken away?

There was a whimpering sound, and his eyes blurred. Sasuke rubbed the tears away and sent an embarrassed sidelong glance at his silent neighbor, only to move on to a stare.

The other kid looked sick, like he should be in a hospital bed or something, and not outside exposed to the elements. Sasuke turned his eyes away and stared down at the wood chips on the ground. Even when he tried not to think, images of their bodies assaulted his mind, and the knowledge that he would never see them again. Ever.

Sasuke dropped his head in his hands and gave in to despair, sobbing as silently as he could, hot bitter tears leaking past his pale fists. He sat against the warm wind and let it run over his body, not caring that the other kid was there. Nothing mattered. But he knew without a doubt, that he wasn't going to return to the compound. He couldn't return there and not go crazy. He would sleep on the streets if he had to. He managed to stop weeping, though the tears still came, and once again glanced at his silent and hopefully oblivious neighbor. Once again he was left staring.

The other boy was crying as well, face twisted in a grimace of pain, tears streaking down shadowed cheeks. What was he crying for? Was he hurt, had escaped from a hospital only to realize his wounds were too much? Or was he crying because _he _was? He'd seen plenty of toddlers do that.

"You okay?" Sasuke whispered roughly, voice cracking. The other kid flinched and opened dripping blue eyes at him. There was so much pain in that one look. And fear. Lots of it.

Sasuke wiped his face with his hands and looked away from the kid, instead staring at the stars, sniffing all the while.

"Dunno what I'm going to do…" he whispered to himself. "Can't go back there. I can't." God he was so weak! Maybe Itachi hadn't killed him because he was so pathetic. So pathetic…

--------

_They_ were urging him to take the black haired boy home, something that was so out of the question, that he never bothered answering _Them. _The boy already frightened him in the way most villagers do, they made his skin crawl, and he was afraid that the kid was going to beat him up. But he hadn't. He'd just looked at him, and started crying. At first, he had thought that it was because he found his face grotesque, but the weeping had a quality he could understand. Despair and defeat. _They_ had jumped on this, whispering to him, insinuating on what a good friend he would make, but he ignored _Them_. The villagers were never to be his friends; they were his tormentors, driving him to a slow grave. They would kill him, he was sure of this, for he had caught them watching him through his windows, mind you he couldn't _see_ them, but he knew they were there. They were waiting for a moment's weakness. Perhaps this boy was sent here as a ploy, to get him. But he knew that was a lie even as he thought it; emotion like that was too hard to fabricate, especially in a young kid like himself

_They_ were so eager, he was sure plans were running through _Their _heads; a head ache spawned, the kind that hurt his ears, his teeth, made his eyes feel like they were going to pop out, and he too was crying, crying because he knew _They_ wouldn't let up unless he did as _They_ commanded. Let someone into his only sanctuary. The Hokage was already out to get him, and now he was being forced into allowing a villager into _his_ place. It was almost intolerable. He would have to clean everything extra hard now.

-------------

He must have been there with the other kid for a few hours, because he began to see a few early morning joggers move through the park. At this, the kid who hadn't said a word or moved stood up from the swing and began to leave.

"Where are you going?" Sasuke called after him, cringing out how pathetic he sounded and wishing at the same moment that he could wink out of existence. The boy froze and darted frightened eyes at him, to the joggers, to the brightening sky, then back to him. Straw colored hair slipped from the hood and hung over an eye.

" 'm going home," came the raspy reply.

Sasuke stared at him, wondering what his home was like, if his parents were frantic with worry that he had escaped the hospital and were now running about the village calling out his name.

"D-Do you want to come with me?" the boy's voice came again, shocking Sasuke out of his thoughts. Sasuke stared at him in disbelief, taking in his wide, frightened eyes, as if waiting for Sasuke to slap him or something. Maybe he was afraid of how mad his parents were going to be when he showed up at home, so he wanted another kid there to temper their rage? That made sense…

Sasuke shrugged as nonchalantly as he could manage and got up from the swing, then blinked in startlement as the kid began to quickly leave the park, at a pace that seemed almost close to running, his eyes darting about at the surroundings. Sasuke frowned but followed, then not liking walking behind someone, walked at his side. The other kid didn't seem to notice at first, preoccupied with shooting frightened glances at the few early birds that rose with the sun. The boy pulled the hood lower until it touched his lashes and bowed his head, and it came to Sasuke's understanding that this kid was scared of the villagers.

They kept on this way until the kid turned towards an unkempt apartment complex and came to a door marked 057. The key was placed in the lock and the boy quickly slipped inside. Sasuke prepared to go, annoyed that the strange kid didn't at least say thank you, when he noticed that the door was still open, and the kid was staring at him with his large dull blue eyes. It was very creepy, because there was only darkness behind him, with only parts of him peering at him, like a ghost from one of those scary stories.

Sasuke stared back.

The blond kid's eyes darted about the walkway before falling on him.

"Aren't you going to come in?" the voice was a ghost of a whisper. Sasuke's brow rose.

"Won't your parents be mad?"

The kid blinked at him rapidly, as if the question had blind-sighted him before a reply came.

"I don't have parents."

What a coincidence…

"You…You live alone?" Sasuke asked in disbelief and the blond kid nodded, and opened the door about an inch wider, and clearly expected Sasuke to slip through there. For a second Sasuke hesitated, then he slipped through the door, the blond moving behind the door, and entered the dark apartment as the door closed and locked behind him. A blast of cleanser hit his nose, and he was reminded of his kitchen when his mom used to have one of her psychotic cleaning moments, and he wondered if this kid had just moved in, because the place was _spotless_. It was so clean, Sasuke felt like he should hose himself down, _outside_, before stepping in here.

The kid moved around him, throwing furtive glances at him over his hunched shoulders before walking into a hallway across from the living room and opened a door. He slipped through it as well and shut the door.

And that was that. Sasuke stood in front of the door, staring at his spotless surroundings, the black couch on the spotless white carpet, the black drapes that covered the news papered windows. The- what?

Sasuke took off his sandals and placed them by the other kid's shoes, and moved across the soft carpet to the windows, moving the curtains aside to stare at the window. Yep. Yesterday's newspaper. Sasuke blinked several times, and then eyed the rest of the apartment nervously. Besides the couch, there was a black cabinet, and a small table that held a porcelain white lamp. That was it. The kitchen was the same, everything done in a spotless black and white. Sasuke ran a hand over the surface of the stove…not a lick of dust. Not even his mother had been this good.

The cleanser smell was giving him a head ache too. He rubbed his eyes and they felt swollen, no doubt from his shameful tears and pure exhaustion. There was a small creak behind him; Sasuke spun around, startling the blond kid, who jumped back and pulled the hood down over his face in pure reflex. Sasuke opened his mouth, not sure what to say to the jumpy kid, and decided to simply wait and see what the other boy would do. He watched as the kid smoothed the hood down over his head in a nervous gesture, thin fingers running over the fabric in what must be a comforting gesture.

"I-'' the boy darted nervous eyes at him. "I thought you might be tired. So I made up my bed for you."

Sasuke felt a wave of pain hit him, remembering that his mother used to make his bed for him, and he turned his head away, blinking away the tears. So weak…

"That's okay," he replied gruffly. "I'll sleep on the couch." He looked back at the blond kid, just in time to catch the wave of terror that washed over the kid's face, making his skin turn a ghostly white. The kid had to swallow several times before speaking again.

"It's…it's not safe out here," he whispered, eyes darting to the windows. "It's safer in there."

The boy moved quickly through the living room, and Sasuke followed, almost feeling scared now. The boy slipped through the door and waited for him to slip through as well before shutting it. Sasuke stared around at the room. Unlike the living room and kitchen, this room was full, full with books that lined the walls in neat piles, leaving an open space to a bed fluffed up with a thick black comforter and white pillows. Just seeing the bed made his shoulders sag, but he turned to stare at the blond. "Where are you going to sleep?"

The strange kid turned and stepped over to a corner surrounded by books, and in the middle was a small blanket and pillow. The kid sat down on the pillow and wrapped the blanket around his thin shoulders, which weren't that well hidden beneath the sweater. He sent nervous glances his way before picking up a nameless flimsy paperback and giving it his undivided attention. Sasuke shrugged and slipped under the comforter, wishing he had his pajamas, and deciding he would get them later on today.

Wait-what? He made it sound like he planned on staying here! He glanced at the other kid and saw that it seemed like the other had forgotten him completely.

"My name is Sasuke. Uchiha Sasuke."

The blond jumped in startlement and turned wide eyes on him. Had the kid actually forgotten him? He watched as he pulled the hood down over his face and smoothing it in a way that promised to be very annoying very soon before replying hesitantly.

"Uzumaki Naruto."

**To be continued**

-Sasuke is seven

-Naruto is six

July 1st the Uchiha Clan was killed by Itachi. This is right before Sasuke's quest for power


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer: Naruto and all related characters do not belong to Kirsdarkenvar**

**Chapter 2**

He felt a stick poking his arm. Sasuke swatted the stick away and turned into the thick covers. The stick poked his arm again, and Sasuke's eyes snapped open. He turned and blinked blearily at the blond kid, then sat up, rubbing his eyes, feeling surprised that he had gotten a full nights sleep without nightmares. Naruto was standing at the bedside, eyes darting from him to the window, sweater from yesterday still hiding his frail body. Draped over his left arm was a white towel, which he shoved at him.

"Please…take a shower," the boy said, and moved quickly out of the way as Sasuke slid from the bed. He frowned at Naruto as he took the towel, unsure if the other kid was insulting his hygiene. Before he could open his mouth, the timid kid was already exiting the book cluttered room with the airs of someone with errands to run. Sasuke followed, rubbing his nose miserably at the cleanser fumes and watched as Naruto returned from the kitchen with a bucket and rag. He glanced red-rimmed eyes at Sasuke before muttering again, "Please take a shower."

"What? I don't stink," Sasuke retorted, face going red with embarrassment. He even sniffed his arm pits quickly, and could only smell the faint scent of laundry detergent from a previous wash. He glared at his host and watched as a look of pain passed over the pallid face.

"No, I have to clean," Naruto rasped in his small voice, lips trembling and eyes watering. "I have to clean more now." He nudged Sasuke with a thin finger towards the bathroom. Sasuke scowled but entered, not wanting to see the boy cry again, because it reminded him of last night, when he too had been showing that bout of weakness. He glanced around the bathroom, grimacing at the gleaming surfaces and the now very familiar chemical smell. There wasn't anything on the sink counter, but opening the mirror cabinet revealed shampoo and soaps. He proceeded to shower, relaxing when the warm water hit his chilled skin. The apartment was cold- he realized he hadn't felt warmth much when he slept last night except when he was deep in the blanket. He couldn't believe he had stayed the night at some weird kids' house. He'd never been the type to befriend some random kid, or go to his house for that matter. His father had always stressed caution around anyone that wasn't an Uchiha, especially after their distant cousin Hyuuga Hinata had almost been kidnapped.

He didn't think he had much to worry about in the kidnapping department anymore- the Uchiha line was all but dead. Sasuke shut off the water and stared silently as the water drained down into the pipes; he rubbed his face and stepped out of the tub.

_Hate me._

Itachi ruined everything.

_Hate me._

His whole clan gone.

_Hate me._

Sasuke grit his teeth and clenched his fists, felt hot rage run through his small body.

_He hated him. _

He grabbed the towel and wiped the water from his body, face red with anger. He glanced around, instantly feeling stupid when he realized he hadn't brought any clean clothes. He glanced around for his pants and balked when they were not within sight. He opened the door and sauntered into the hallway, spying Naruto wiping the walls down with a rag, surrounded by bottles of chemical cleansers. He was wiping away at the same spot on the wall, the same rhythmic stroke over an area that seemed devoid of dirt.

"Hey Naruto," the blond jumped and blinked up at him owlishly from across the room. "What did you do with my clothes?" He felt a chill when he realized that he hadn't heard Naruto enter when he was showering.

Naruto stopped wiping the wall and gave a weak shrug.

"They're in the hamper washing…" his eyelids gave a strange flutter. "They have to be washed."

"Well what am I going to wear?"

Naruto just returned to wiping the wall- the same spot. Sasuke threw his hands up in the air with a huff and returned to Naruto's bedroom, wrapped in the towel, and eyed the books that lined the walls. Most of them were about things, plants, animals, buildings; he pulled one up that was on ancient literature…whatever that was. Sasuke placed the book back on its pile when his eye caught a flashy blue book, and upon picking it up, saw that it was on infamous shinobi. He blinked at the gold inked words on the cover and thought back on his class at the Academy. When was the last time he had been there? He had been at the top of his class, hopefully to be as strong as his brother… He gripped the book; he supposed he was way behind now-two months of inactivity most likely had made him weak. Sasuke pursed his lips and concluded that he would return to the Academy as soon as possible.

He stood up, brushing damp hair from his face and headed back into the living room, his stomach grumbling in its emptiness. He hadn't eaten much yesterday except for a bowl of cereal in the morning- and that had barely gone down well. He glanced at Naruto, who was wiping the small table with the lamp, the strong smell of the cleanser making his eyes water. Sasuke moved into the spotless kitchen, tightened his towel, and peeked into the cupboard. It was empty. He glanced back at Naruto, who had moved onto brushing the couch with the cloth- which was weird because wasn't that going to make the couch wet? His stomach grumbled again, and he braved looking into the refrigerator. Not only was it empty- but it also wasn't on. Sasuke gave a small sigh, which he was sure was unbecoming of an Uchiha and moved into the living room. Naruto had left the couch and was examining the carpet- no doubt looking for a reason to clean it too. Sasuke moved over to the couch and touched it- it was cool to the touch but it wasn't wet as he imagined it might be. He slumped down and ignored the ache in his belly, sure that at some point his host would remember it. It was poor manners to ask for food; his mother had said so, and he would just have to wait for it to be offered, though he couldn't imagine what Naruto would give him, since the house was empty.

A buzzer went off, catching Naruto's unwavering attention, and the blond disappeared into the small pantry to return with Sasuke's clothing. Grateful that he could at least put something on, Sasuke removed the towel from his waist and donned his fresh scented blue shirt and black pants. Naruto, on the other hand, headed for the bathroom and moments later the run of water told the hungry Uchiha that the boy was taking a shower. Sasuke returned to the book cluttered room and sat on the edge of the bed, gazing at the news papered window. He would go back to the Academy and learn everything. He would be the best- better than the others, better than Itachi…

He sat there in silent thought until the door opened, and Naruto slipped into the room, eyes darting towards him from under the hood, that he smoothed down, before sitting in his pillowed corner. Sasuke's stomach took the moment to give a rather angry declaration, loud enough that he turned crimson, and Naruto blinked up at him. Sasuke looked away- feeling embarrassed, then looked back at the blond, examining the empty expression, the flutter of his eyelids. Naruto crawled forward and slipped his hand under the bed, retrieving a chocolate bar. He held it out to Sasuke- who blushed and took the candy bar.

As he hungrily ate the bar, thinking that his mother would have a heart attack if she had seen him eat that for breakfast, wondered if this was all that the blond ate. He peered at the blond, at the hollows in his cheeks, the puffy red-rimmed eyes, the thin fingers that clutched the book he was reading. He _was_ really skinny, and he looked so weak- he wondered how the boy mustered any energy to clean. If Itachi had seen him- Sasuke shuddered at the thought and glanced around the room for a trash can to throw his empty wrapper. Though he no longer felt hunger pangs, he wanted a real meal, a well-rounded one for a growing ninja.

Leaving the room, he headed into the kitchen and saw a small bin in a corner. Peering inside, a whiff of chocolate blew his way and he spied several wrappers at the bottom, along with what looked like a half eaten sandwich. Sasuke tossed the wrapper inside, then headed for the door, donning on his sandals, which to his horror, were damp. Lifting as sandal to his face, Sasuke sniffed it and jerked his head away. The familiar scent of foot sweat had been replaced by detergent, and he sent an incredulous look at Naruto's bedroom door before putting it on his feet and unlocking the door.

As he opened the door, he squinted into the mid-morning light, grimacing at the blaring sun, and realizing just how gloomy the spotless apartment was. Closing the door behind him, Sasuke headed down the stairwell, glancing at the other apartments, noticing that the whole floor was eerily silent. But as he headed down to the first floor, he saw people moving about inside of the rooms. Moving out into the village, he glared at the happy faces of the civilians, their faces so relaxed and carefree. Sasuke stopped by a stall and had rice and fish, drowning away the sweetness of the chocolate that sat unhappily in his stomach. When he was finished, he headed for the Academy, aware that by the time he arrived it would be lunch.

Entering the Academy he watched as the other children ate their lunches, talking, laughing, or tossing kunai at trees- perfectly comfortable- perfectly safe. Sasuke stuffed his hands in his pockets and headed for the rooftop, knowing that very few of the students bothered to go there.

"Hey Sasuke-kun!" one girl called, and he glared at her.

"Where have you been, Uchiha-san?" some boys called

"I heard he dropped out-'' one kid whispered, and Sasuke's shoulders tensed at the remark. Like hell he would! His pace quickened until he was at the roof, where he sat leaning against the fence and took a deep breath through his nostrils. An Uchiha drop out of anything? Not likely. He would show them- he may be one of the last- but he would be the best.

Sasuke remained on the roof until lunch was over, then he headed for his class. Upon entering, the other students stared, as if he were reported dead or something. Sasuke stared coldly back, until their nosy eyes looked away, except for Iruka-sensei, whose warm eyes were filled with concern and relief.

"Sasuke," the man said with his calm voice- unless he was shouting. "It's good to see you back. You've missed much, but I'm sure you'll catch up quickly." Yes, yes he would. Sasuke nodded towards the man, thankful that he wasn't making a big deal of it, and sat down in the second row, as far away from the weird pink haired girl who kept staring at him on and off. Mizuki- sensei, an assistant of Iruka-sensei, handed him a small stack of back assignments, and he got to work on them quickly enough, tuning out the sound of the other students. He hated this place.

----------------

Naruto stripped the bed, pulling the blanket and sheets from the mattress and piling them on the carpet. Sasuke had slept in this bed, and the thought of it remaining unwashed caused his skin to tingle uncomfortably. The dark haired boy had left after he had eaten, and Naruto hoped he would not return.

_**HemusthemusthemustWeneedhimneedhimneedhimHewillshowustheway.**_

Naruto cringed at the excited voices in his head, _Them, _the ones who tormented him along with the villagers. Naruto dragged the linen to the hamper, while his eyes clouded with tears. _Why do we need him? He's just going to hurt us- I know he will. He's a villager. What can he show us beyond pain?_

_**POWERPOWERPOWERPOWERPOWERPOWERPOWERPOWER.**_

Naruto screeched and stumbled, crashing into the dryer, bashing his head, and dropped to his bony knees. Pain burst through his skull, and he curled up in a ball as he felt blood ooze from the wound on his forehead.

He prayed it would heal slowly.

-------------------------------

Sasuke exited the Ninja Academy, mood sour and bitterness running through his mouth as he headed into the street. By the end of the day, the whole Academy was privy to his tragedy, a lot of 'ohs' and 'that Uchiha?'s…accompanied by round eyes and barely veiled whispers. All of it left him angry and unlikely to strike up a conversation with all the nosy students, who no doubt wanted to know what it was like to lose everything one loved. He wandered around Konoha, trying to avoid the inevitable, which was going back to the Uchiha compound, back to death. He stood next to street vendors and hawkers, biting his fingernails and remembering that it was a bad habit, only to do it again five minutes later as he watched villagers move on with their perfectly normal lives.

He wondered what Naruto was doing, and could only imagine that he was cleaning, or sitting in that corner surrounded by books. Did Naruto get lonely? Sasuke stifled a sigh and headed back to the compound, even though he had sworn that he wouldn't return there. It wasn't like he had a place to go unless he wanted to spend it in an orphanage- which he had heard was the last place one wanted to go.

Arriving at the gates, his eyes darted to all the vacant houses, many with signs that death had come way too quickly; food still in bowls, laundry hanging on the lines. He entered the compound with hunched shoulders and a pale face, quickly heading toward the main house, which never used to seem so big until now. Arriving at his home, he took a deep breath and was appalled by the dust that hung in the air. He eyed his surroundings, taking in the dust that sat comfortably on the tabletops, and floated in the last rays of light produced by the fading sun. He shut the blinds quickly and headed up the stairs to his room, thinking that compared to Naruto's place, his own would seem like a dirt trap.

When in his room, he dug all the jutsu scrolls that his father had given to him, most of them fire based, and began to practice the hand movements and the build up of chakra. Twice during the hour of practice he had jumped at the creaking of the house, or a bird bursting from the brush outside his window. He even shut the curtains in his room and wondered why he even bothered-no one would come here.

Another hour later, and he had ceased to study the jutsu, instead he wandered the house, ran a rag over the kitchen counter, and for the fifth time wondered what Naruto was doing. Was he still reading? Eating? No, he doubted that Naruto would be eating. Sasuke opened the kitchen cabinets and eyed all the packaged foods that sat uneaten in them, countless meals that his mother would never make again. He should share them.

--------------------

The bed had long since been remade, his wounds had been logged into the small brown leather book that he kept next to his pillow, and his apartment was decontaminated. All was as painless as he could possible get it, except that he was so weak, he could not stand anymore. Naruto stayed on hands and knees, eyes clouded by tears, body feeling flushed, and yet cold at the same time. There was a racket in his head, bouncing around his skull, many voices that sniped and collided, shouted and whispered- such a cacophony of noise and pain that he wanted to curl up in a ball and attempt to sleep it away. But he wasn't in his room, and it wasn't safe out here; he could feel them trying to peek through the windows, raging at the newspaper that blocked their prying eyes, wanting to see if there was a monster still in here.

Naruto turned and crawled towards the kitchen. He needed nourishment, water and maybe a candy bar for the sugar and caffeine. _They _wanted something more- most likely meat, but he didn't like it when meat was accompanied by bloody scenes, animals, people- flesh tearing, blood dripping, and screams of terror and pain. There were monsters in his head, and they wanted blood.

He gripped the sink and pulled his frail body up, leaned over the sink and turned on the faucet, drinking greedily, until his stomach stretched and ached. With the water in his belly, he could walk to his room, where it was safe, and as he slowly made his way to the hallway, someone knocked on his door. Naruto froze, the voices paused, and silenced reigned in the apartment. Naruto's eyes trained on the bottom of the door, where the outside hall light seeped in and what looked like the shadows of feet hovered. It wasn't the Hokage, he knew, since the man had been there yesterday, and the mere thought of a villager trying to come in made sweat appear on his pallid face.

There was another knock on the door, but it was less assertive, and was accompanied by an uncertain, "Naruto?"

It was Uchiha Sasuke? Naruto swallowed painfully. What did _he_ want? - why was he back? Images of villagers standing behind the black haired boy almost sent him into a blind panic if not for the insistent voices chanting, _**Lethiminlethiminlethiminlethiminlethiminlethiminlethiminlethimin. **_

But he had just cleaned everything! Tears of defeat clouded his eyes and trailed hotly down his face as he went slowly to the door, pulling his hood up to cover as much as he could before he unlocked and opened the door a crack to peer out at the other kid. Sasuke stood outside the door, face flushed and eyes alternating between peering at him and looking elsewhere. There was a large blue pack strapped to his back, and it seemed jammed full of outside things that he just knew he wouldn't like in his home.

_**Lethiminlethiminlethiminlethiminlethiminlethiminlethiminlethimin.**_

Naruto moved back a foot and opened the door as wide as he would allow, hoping that the large pack strapped to Sasuke's back wouldn't rub so hard on the door as the boy squeezed himself through. Sasuke's nose wrinkled as he placed the pack gently against the wall, and removed his sandals. He flexed his shoulders and then managed what may have been an attempt at a smile as Naruto quickly shut and locked the door, allowing his eyes to sweep the area; sure he was going to catch one of the villagers watching him from the shadows. He did not see anyone, and this only made him more apprehensive, that they were so good at hiding and watching him.

Naruto quickly retreated to his room, feeling ill and not wanting to eat any longer. This return visit reeked of routine, and no doubt Uchiha Sasuke would be returning everyday, contaminating his apartment daily. Naruto sat in his corner, pulling his hood down over his tear stained cheeks, imagining days filled with constant cleansing, running over things twice- no three times in order to remove the filth that Sasuke would bring in. His door opened and Sasuke slipped in, holding an indigo blanket and matching pillow.

Naruto pulled himself up and quickly snatched the blanket and pillow from the startled boy.

"I-Is this all you brought?" he demanded weakly, and the Uchiha hesitated before pursing his lips and shaking his head. Naruto turned and quickly headed down the hallway, stopping before the large travel pack. Sasuke sighed and opened the zipper, pulling out articles of clothing, another pair of sandals, several large parchments of paper that he recognized as ninja jutsu scrolls, and at the bottom, food.

Naruto gathered all the cloth and headed for the hamper, ignoring the sigh that followed him. There wasn't anything he could do about the scrolls, but he would run a disinfectant wipe over all the food that were wrapped in plastic, boxes, or containers. The voices whispered through his head in contentment, and the headache subsided to the point where the knot at his shoulders actually relaxed. Naruto took a deep breath as he dumped all the clothing into the washing machine and actually felt a wave of relaxation flow through him. He moved into the living and peered at his returned guest, and watched in chagrin as the other boy pulled the refrigerator forward and plugged it in. His kitchen cabinets were open, and to his horrified fascination, it seemed that Sasuke was trying to fill them up with food. Naruto's shoulders sagged as misery returned; he would have to go over the kitchen later on tonight.

Sasuke pushed the refrigerator back and turned toward him.

"Are you hungry?" he asked, dark eyes focused intently on his face. Naruto blinked and shuddered, smoothing down his hood and quickly retreated to his room. He sat in his corner and covered his face with his pale hands; the headache was returning, and Sasuke was ruining his carefully calculated routines with a cruel efficiency that reeked of villainy.

Ten minutes later Sasuke entered the room, reeking of some kind of food, foreign to him and permeating his apartment. Sasuke sat on the bed, an arm full with scrolls that he idly went through before glancing at him every once in a while. He did not like that stare, it was often the look the Hokage donned before he was about to do something to him.

"You really should eat, you know," Sasuke said in what seemed like a weak attempt at being authorative. "My mo-'' a funny expression came over his face, a paling of the features before it went blank. "You're too weak. How do you expect to protect yourself?"

Naruto's heart began to pound, his headache increasing. Protect himself? That was why he stayed here most of the time- for protection. Did Sasuke know that someone was going to hurt him? He wanted to hide from Sasuke, who didn't make him feel safe. Sasuke was fingering the scrolls, black eyes still focused on him.

"You should join the Ninja Academy Naruto, and become a shinobi, like me, so that he-'' he once again cut himself off with a thinning of the lips, but Naruto didn't notice, now that the blood that was pounding in his head angrily now drained from it, leaving him dizzy. Join the Academy?! Become a shinobi? That would mean going outside, talking to the villagers, touching them. He was ill, just at the thought, even as Sasuke seemed to nod to himself with resolve.

"It'll be easy to get you signed up," he was saying to himself, "They accept just about anybody…and I'll train with you." He was glaring angrily at the scrolls now, fingers gripping the paper. "He'll never be able to take-''

Naruto curled up in a ball and covered his ears, _Their_ laughter echoing throughout the reaches of his mind. His eyes rolled up into his head as darkness dragged him under. He knew that it wouldn't be long before he was jolted awake by some scene of pain, blood, and death; it upset him, the idea of waking up to Sasuke's black eyes.

**TBC**

**It's very subtle, but Naruto is already starting to rub off on Sasuke.**


	3. Chapter 3

_Disclaimer: Naruto does not belong to Kirdarkenvar_

**Chapters Un-beta'd, so sorry for spelling and grammatical errors**.

**Chapter Three**

That morning, Sasuke woke to a knock on the front door, and a weak gasp from his companion. Sasuke pulled his blanket from over his head and blinked blearily at Naruto, who was curled up in his blanket in the corner, dull blue eyes wide with terror. Who could that be? There was another knock-then what sounded like a key in the door-lock. Alarm raced through him, and he glanced once again at Naruto, whose pale face was also beginning to look a sickly green.

"Get under the bed," Sasuke hissed, then grabbed the kunai he had placed under the pillow as Naruto crawled quickly and obediently under the bed. Sasuke's heart was pounding in his ears, and he too felt like throwing up. It was Itachi- he knew it was his brother- coming to finish him and anyone with him off. He moved to the door and slowly turned the handle, trying to silence his breath. He peeked through the crack and saw two figures standing in the doorway. Neither looked like Itachi.

Sasuke slipped through the bedroom door and stared incredulously at the Hokage himself, standing next to what looked like an assistant. What was the Hokage doing here?

The old man smiled in relief. "Ah Sasuke. What a surprise to see you here! Naruto usually doesn't like people in his home-I'm the only one thats' managed so far."

Sasuke was dumbfounded. The Hokage visited Naruto personally?! Sasuke managed to gather his wits about himself, calling back to the bedroom door, "It's okay. It's just Hokage-sama." He saw Naruto's head peek out from under the bed, but disappeared back under in a flash. Sasuke sighed and turned back to the Hokage, warily eyeing him and the man who was standing next to him, looking around the apartment with curious eyes. He stuffed his hands in his pajama pockets and waited impatiently for the Hokage to state why he was here.

"Is Naruto all right?" the old man asked, and Sasuke shrugged, unsure how he was supposed to answer that. Yes, he fine? Or no, he's crazy? The Hokage smiled at his shrug and sat down on the black couch. The man with him had his nose wrinkled, obviously in response to the sharp chemical cleanser in the air. "I'm glad you're with him Sasuke. Naruto has been alone since he was a toddler, and he doesn't have any friends."

Sasuke leaned against a wall and glanced at the bedroom door. Naruto had been alone since he was a baby? No wonder he was scared of everyone. Sasuke crossed his arms and stared at the elder ninja. The Hokage could get Naruto enrolled in the Academy quickly and efficiently...

"I think," he started cautiously, and the Sandaime's brows rose in anticipation. "that Naruto should come to the Ninja Academy with me- so that he'll be safer..."

The Hokage's dark brown eyes studied him for a moment, then darted toward the bedroom door, which was cracked open a bit. The assistant looked startled at his proposition, and kept darting nervous glances about the apartment. Then the Hokage spoke.

"It's a splendid idea Sasuke- Naruto needs to get out and interact with other human beings, and I would love to enroll him, but I fear that getting him to go would be almost impossible."

Sasuke uncrossed his arms and smirked. "I can get him to do it."

The Hokage stared speculatively at the youth before getting to his feet. "Alright Sasuke, I'll have him enrolled today and he can start Monday. However, I'm putting you in charge of his welfare until he is capable of making rational decisions himself. Do you understand?"At his nod, the Sandaime sighed. "I'm sure right now you don't understand, but you will soon comprehend the enormity of your new responsibilities."

The Hokage moved to the bedroom door and peered in, spying a lock of Naruto's hair under the bed.

"I know you'll be angry with this decision Naruto, but it's for your own good. You'll thank me later, I imagine."

There was no reply from under the bed.

The Hokage sighed and moved from the doorway and patted Sasuke's head good naturedly as he and the assistant headed for the door. Sasuke watched as they left, the assistant sending a last nervous look about the small complex. He understood why the man might be startled by the cleanliness of the place- but there really was no reason for him to look so spooked. The door clicked shut, and the outside world left. Sasuke took a deep breath and felt a surge of excitement- something he hadn't felt since the massacre. He turned back to the room and spied Naruto crawling out from under the bed, shaking like a leaf, thin fingers gripping the carpet as he moved not unlike an old man. His face was scrunched in pain as he rose unsteadily to his feet, and when his miserable eyes opened, they sent despairing looks his way.

Sasuke moved into the room and dug into his pack, pulling out toiletries so that he could get cleaned up, selecting his favorite blue high collared shirt and white shorts as he headed into the bathroom. Naruto had moved into the kitchen, and Sasuke saw a glimpse of the cleaning bucket. He grimaced and brushed his teeth, thinking on all the things he had to do, and feeling anticipation move through him. Today was Saturday, so he had today and tomorrow to get Naruto up to speed and perhaps assess his skills at chakra manipulation- if he had any at all- the thought gave him pause as he turned on the shower and stepped in. Sasuke shrugged and lathered his hair with shampoo. No worries- they were at the part in the Academy where they were just getting in touch with their chakra- so Naruto wouldn't be behind.

The door opened suddenly and in strode Naruto, rag and bucket in his hands.

"Hey!" Sasuke snapped incredulously as he realized that Naruto was going to clean the bathroom as he showered, judging by how he placed the bucket down on the tiled floor and began to spray the sink counter with disinfectant. "Hey. You can't do that while I'm in here," he stated calmly, but the blond only pulled his hood down and ignored him, rubbing the rag methodically over the counters. Sasuke sighed and continued his business, trying to ignore the almost silent sounds that Naruto was making.

When he was finished, he found that Naruto was waiting patiently by the bathroom door, and his clothing had been folded neatly on the counter (even his pajamas). He wrapped a towel around his waist and scowled at the other boy, grabbing his clothes and headed into the bedroom. Naruto quickly shut the bathroom door behind him.

After drying and dressing, he headed for the small kitchen, ignoring the ache of fresh disinfectant and opened the refrigerator, which hummed happily- in his opinion- probably glad it was actually being used, for once. He'd brought eggs over, and he remembered seeing his mother make an omelet before, so he pulled them out and dug into the cupboards, relieved to see that though Naruto didn't have food, he at least had the utensils needed to make and eat food.

Which was weird.

--

Naruto rocked silently under the spray of the water, eyes focused on the tiled wall before him, face frozen in horror. Sasuke was really going to try and make him into a ninja! He pulled at his wet locks, increasing his pounding head ache as he cried silently, trying to muffle the occasional sobs that broke free. Why was Sasuke doing this to him? He hadn't been mean to him- he had let him sleep in his bed, and had given him his last candy bar... But he should have known better; no matter what he did- the villagers were going to get him. The moment he steps out, they would hatch plans to kill him- maybe during training- or during a mission, or on his way home. There were a million and one ways to die, and he knew they would pick the worst way to off him- something slow and painful.

Naruto shuddered and bit his fingers to muffle a wail. Maybe he should just kill himself now and save himself further pain. Before he could think further on the idea, _They_ roared at him, causing him to cry out and fall over from his crouch. He curled up in a ball and keened in pain, covering his ears against the sound of the water hitting the bathtub floor. He felt warm blood flood through his nostrils and knew that _They_ had given him a nosebleed. He should have known better than to think longingly on his own demise.

He out -waited the pain until it was a dull throb and the _voices_ were down to annoyed murmurs, before he washed the blood from his face and shut the shower off. He wiped down the bathroom one last time before he was mildly satisfied that it was clean, then dried himself and put on black pants and another grey hoodie, and as he exited the bathroom was not assaulted by the comforting scent of disinfectant- but a foreign scent. He stepped into the living room fearfully and stared at the kitchen where his cruel guest had not only made a bit of a mess, but seemed to just finish making a meal. There were egg shells on the counter tops and crumbs of bread around the toaster that he had never used.

Sasuke was standing at the small table, two plates with what looked like two pieces of bread with cooked egg slapped in between them. Sasuke sat grumpily at one end, then looked at him expectantly.

"Well come on, I didn't make this so you could stare at it!"

Naruto's eyes darted to the covered windows and flinched, shaking his head and headed back into the bedroom, where it was safe. He wasn't in the least hungry right now- though he knew that he should at least find a candy bar to eat- oh but he had given the last to Sasuke. Naruto returned to his room and pulled the sheets off of the bed, then dug into the bag and pulled out all of Sasuke's clothes, piling them up on top of the sheets.

"What are you doing?" Sasuke demanded behind him, and Naruto jumped in startlement, turning to see that the dark-haired boy had brought the plates of food into the room. "Those are clean," the boys' lips pursed as he stared at the bundle of clothing.

Not by his standards they weren't, he'd only washed them once, and they needed a second washing before he could feel decent about them. Sasuke had brought them from the outside world- the filthy world. Naruto moved to gather all the fabric into his arms, but Sasuke took a very threatening step forward, and Naruto backed up, dread coursing through him. No doubt, Sasuke was going to beat him up now. He smoothed his hood down over his face and tensed his shoulders, jumping in fright as the plate with the egg sandwich appeared. He jerked his head away and stared tearfully at his cruel guest, who had a very stern look on his face.

"Let's make a deal," the boy said flatly, "I'll let you clean my _already_ _clean_ clothes, but only after you eat this." He'd backed Naruto up against the wall, the pile of sheets and clothes now behind him and far out of Naruto's reach. Naruto glanced down at the plate that was patiently held in front of him, and grimaced, the smell making him feel ill. He really didn't want to eat this- what if Sasuke had poisoned it?

Despite his reluctance, he took hold of the plate and slid along the wall until he was at his corner again and sat down on his pillow, while Sasuke sat on the stripped bed and began to take big bites of his egg sandwich. Naruto stared sickly at him from under the fringe of his grey hood before picking a piece off of the sandwich and placing it in his mouth. As he chewed, he marveled at the burst of flavor, startled at the texture, and ignored the look of satisfaction Sasuke sent his way. It was when he had less than half the sandwich in his stomach that he remembered why he didn't like to eat food with so much substance. His stretched stomach seized, and he was jerked forward onto his hands and knees, holding back the heaves that racked his ribs with pain. Through the blur of tears he could see Sasuke's feet next to him, and wanted to crawl away from his cruel guest. Instead he took deep breaths and forced the nausea down until his stomach only ached with the fullness of the egg sandwich, and he pushed the plate away from him as he sat back.

His guest was standing over him, glaring at the barely eaten sandwich before giving a small sigh and removing it from his sight. Naruto sighed in relief and slumped on his pillow, feeling a bit better- and surprisingly stronger- strong enough to redo the kitchen that Sasuke had ruined with his messes.

However, when Sasuke returned to the room, there was an intense look of determination on his face. He sat down on the bed and stared intently at him, and he smoothed down his hood in avoidance. He didn't like it when people looked at him; looking meant thinking, and thinking meant pain- for him that is.

"What do you know about chakra?"

Naruto looked at him weakly and then glanced at his wall of books, all of which he had read before- more than once. "Chakra is the resulting form when two or more energies are mixed together," he whispered as he crawled across the room and pulled out a pale blue book from one of the piles. "These two energies being Physical Energy and Spiritual Energy." He glanced at his guest to see that the other was pleased with his answer. "Mixing these two energies together is called Chakra Molding, which means to extract-"

Sasuke cut him off with a wave of his hand.. "Good, at least you know what chakra is. You won't have trouble in class."

Naruto paled at the idea as he pushed the book along the carpet toward Sasuke, who leaned down and picked it up, appraising it carefully. "We'll have to start today with kunai tossing, and maybe some taijutsu that I know-"

Naruto shook his head vehemently at Sasuke's words, feeling terror course through him. "I'm not going outside- not during the day!" he all but wheezed, and his cruel guest glared at him in response.

"Oh yes you are. We're going out today, even if I have to drag you out of this apartment!" He stood up abruptly from the bed and dug into his blue pack, and to Naruto's horror, he pulled out several kunai and holsters. Naruto gasped in terror and huddled into the corner, feeling tears leak out of his eyes; his guest was going to hurt him now, just as he knew any villager would- and he had been a fool to allow anyone into his sanctuary. There was a clutter of gleeful laughter in his head- and it hurt his feelings that _They_ found his encroaching pain amusing. "Come on," his cruel guest approached him quickly and grabbed his arm. He tried to pull away, but the other was clearly stronger, and he hung his head as he resigned himself to the oncoming pain.

But it seemed that it wasn't truly Sasuke's plan to hurt him- or so it seemed as he was pulled out of the room and toward the door. He dug his bare feet into the carpet, eyes darting to the windows in terror.

"We can't go out!" he cried, but the cruel guest ignored him, grabbing both their sandals and managed to put his on while holding onto him. "It's not safe," he gasped. "They'll kill me-they'll kill me!" He was beginning to hyperventilate.

Sasuke was staring at the him, a frown marring his pale skin. "Whose going to kill you?"

"Them!" Naruto wheezed, eyes darting to the window. He could feel them watching him already, behind the newspaper, waiting for him to come out. Sasuke shook his head, rolled his eyes, and shoved a sandal onto Naruto's foot.

"No one's going to kill you." He stated in exasperation. "I'll protect you."

Naruto slumped to the carpet and stared dreadfully up at his captor. _He _would protect him? He stared weakly as Sasuke put the other sandal on his foot and pulled him to his feet.

"Where's your key?"

Naruto stared.

"You know, to the door..? So we can get back inside?!" His guest was looking annoyed again. "You do have an apartment key right? I mean, the Hokage has one, so you should have the original, and I saw you use it."

Naruto dug into his pocket and produced the key, and watched in sick apprehension as Sasuke opened the door. Light from the sun flooded into the apartment, and he covered his face and pulled the hood down, letting his bangs and a few stray locks of hair cover his face. Then he was pulled out, unprotected, into the world, with only a boy he met two days ago's word that he would protect him.

--

Sasuke rolled his eyes as they headed for the training grounds where they could practice throwing kunai, exasperated by Naruto's weird behavior. The way he was acting, it was as if he expected someone to jump out and kill him. With all the trouble it had taken to get Naruto out of the apartment, now that he was out, he was walking so close to Sasuke that it was a wonder they didn't trip over each other.

Sasuke glanced at his companion to see that he was smoothing down that stupid hood, head down and eyes darting at everything, fearful and shaky. Sasuke glanced at the villagers they passed; none of them seemed to notice him, and he rolled his eyes again. If anything, they were staring at _him_, whispering to one another and giving him piteous looks, no doubt talking about the Massacre. Sasuke glared ahead; he didn't need their pity- nor wanted it.

By the time they had arrived at the training sites, Naruto was so white he could see the veins on his neck.

"See," he snapped. "We've been out here for more than thirty minutes and no one has tried to kill you."

Naruto eyes did that weird flutter and he headed for a tree- no doubt to hide in, but Sasuke grabbed his shoulder and pulled him back.

"Nuh uh," he pointed to a tree not far from them that had a bulls eye carved into it. "We're going to practice kunai throwing. Let me show you how."

--

Surprisingly, though he still jumped at just about every sound, Naruto was a bit of a natural at kunai tossing. Not that he had hit anywhere near the bulls-eye, but he managed to hit the tree. Most of the kids at the Academy had only hit the dirt for the first few weeks, so it was interesting to see that Naruto was able to hit the tree on his first try. He listened attentively when Sasuke gave him instructions, even if his eyes darted around like he was expecting someone to jump out and attack them, and he was a patient observer.

Sasuke tossed kunai with him, watching as Naruto got a little better- if he would only put a bit more force into his tosses so that the kunai would actually stick into the tree... He eyed Naruto; the blond's body, from what he had seen, was so bony- it was unlikely that he would be able to do much unless he ate more.

Three hours into the kunai tossing he decided that they should go to lunch, and headed for the local food stands, Naruto following close behind him. It reminded him of how he used to follow...Itachi- his mind shuddered at the thought of his brother and he stopped too abruptly, causing Naruto to bump into him. Instead of backing up though, Naruto stood literally an inch from him, head down, body trembling.

"Ah, Sasuke kun," a familiar voice called, and he looked to see that he was standing in front of the rice ball stand he used to frequent before... everything was destroyed. The vendor was a kind man, and his eyes were full of sympathy as he smiled down at him. "I haven't seen you in a while. Why don't you and your friend sit down and have something to eat eh?" He winked at him.

Sasuke glanced at Naruto, who was still too close and staring at the dirt before sitting down on one of the stools. Naruto, to his horror, moved and crouched down next to his feet, hood hiding his face, hands resting on his knees. The vendor leaned over the counter and blinked curiously down at the hooded head.

"He alright?" he asked as he set four rice balls down in front of him, two with fish in the middle, and one with red bean paste. The other was simply rice, and he picked it up and leaned down, holding it near Naruto's face. Naruto did not lift his head, but he clearly leaned away from the rice-ball.

"Come on. You have to eat."

Naruto shook his head and Sasuke put the rice ball back, sighing in agitation as he began to eat.

"I'll pack this one away for the little guy eh?" the friendly vendor winked at him and wrapped the plain rice ball in plastic wrap. Sasuke nodded, and as he finished dug into his pocket for change, but the vendor shook his head. "This one's on the house. You take care." Again Sasuke nodded and placed the rice ball into his pocket and moved from the stool. Naruto slowly got to his feet, then quickly followed behind Sasuke, and just as he was heading back to the training grounds, Naruto made an abrupt turn towards an alley.

Startled, Sasuke followed him, and watched in stunned silence as Naruto clammered up the side of a trash bin and proceeded to throw up. It was so neatly done, that he returned to Sasuke's side like nothing had happened.

"Maybe we should go back..." he muttered, and headed in the direction of Naruto's apartment, Naruto following at his back.

"Hey Sasuke-kun!" an annoying voice called, and he purposely ignored it. It belonging to Yamanaka Ino, with that stupid pink haired girl no doubt with her. Ino grabbed his arm, grinning at him excitedly. "Wanna go play with us? We're playing-" she cut herself off when she noticed Naruto practically glued to him. "Who's this?" her voice was full of curiosity, and he used her moment of distraction to pull his arm away. Behind her, a shy Haruno Sakura stared at Naruto as well.

"Go away," he muttered as he grabbed Naruto's bony arm and headed quickly toward Naruto's complex. Naruto seemed almost desperate to return to the apartment. By the time they arrived, the sun was at its zenith, and he unlocked the door, slightly comforted by the blast of chemical cleanser in the air. Naruto quickly headed for the bathroom, and he imagined that the other was washing out his mouth.

He locked the door behind him and pulled out the rice ball. He hated how everyone was treating him, like something fragile that needed to be coddled and pitied. He glared down at the rice ball as Naruto exited the bathroom and made a bee-line for the kitchen. In moments he was cleaning it again, and Sasuke felt a bit bad that he had made a mess in it after Naruto had cleaned it earlier that morning.

He moved up behind Naruto, who was wiping the counters and tried to hand the rice ball to him, but Naruto moved away.

"Why won't you eat it? We're not outside anymore, if you don't like people watching you eat."

Naruto placed a thin hand on his forehead, a look of pain flashing across his thin, pale features, and he looked at him.

"It's 'probly poisoned."

Sasuke stared down at the rice ball, then sighed in defeat. It wasn't poisoned, but suddenly he didn't feel like pushing the subject. Instead he returned to the living room and slumped down on the couch, staring dully up at the ceiling.

--

The next day, it was even harder to get Naruto to leave the apartment, and he still refused to eat the rice ball. Sasuke had tried to tempt him with noodles, fish, even some snacks, but he refused all with a look of clear distaste. Finally, when Sasuke was completely fed up, he forced Naruto to eat another egg sandwich, having failed to recreate his mother's omelets, but it all fell through quickly when less than thirty minutes afterward, Naruto vomited on the carpet- which led to the whole carpet being cleaned. In all- there was no way he would be able to train outside today. Sasuke resigned himself to planning out routines that he thought would improve Naruto's kunai tossing skill, and perhaps show him some taijutsu that he had learned. He would leave the manipulation of chakra to Iruka-sensei, being that he didn't think he would be able to explain it better than Iruka -sensei.

But this whole eating thing...how was he to get Naruto to eat anything without throwing it up soon after? His mind moved to seeing Naruto's trashcan littered with candy bar wrappers. He jumped up, headed for the door and put on his sandals. Naruto ate candy bars- so he'd just go buy a whole bunch then.

"I'm leaving," he called out as he unlocked the door, then paused. He'd said the same thing to his mother before he had left for the Academy and had returned to her mutilated body. Naruto's head peeked out from the bottom of the doorway, his eyes blearily acknowledging that he was about to leave. Locking the door behind him, he headed down to the stairs and was startled to see the chuunin from yesterday heading up toward him.

"Uchiha-san," the man murmured. "I've been sent to notify you that Uzumaki has been registered at the Academy, and should show up tomorrow at eight am."

Sasuke nodded and moved past him, glancing back to see that the chuunin was staring thoughtfully at their door. Sasuke rounded the corner, then stopped and peered back, watching the man until he apparently decided to leave. Why had he been staring at their door?

Full of thought, Sasuke headed to the nearest store and bought a bag full of candybars- the man at the register had stared sickly at the amount he had bought.

When he returned to the apartment, it was to a thoroughly scrubbed bedroom floor and a very pale Naruto, who sat dully in the corner, red-rimmed eyes glazed over.

"Here," he muttered and produced a candy bar full of chocolate and nuts, and Naruto turned his head toward him. He handed the bar to him and watched as he took it with shaky hands, examining the wrapper until he was apparently satisfied and slowly opened it. For a second, Sasuke thought he was simply being over-cautious, as if it would explode if he opened it too fast, but staring at the shaky hands, it came to him that Naruto was simply too weak to be hasty. Sasuke didn't know what it was like to be weak from hunger, and he vaguely wondered why Naruto would willingly allow himself to become that way. He watched from the bed as he nibbled slowly on the candy bar, and thought that perhaps being in the Academy might inspire Naruto to eat more- and maybe be less afraid of everyone.

So Sasuke spent the rest of the day watching Naruto clean the apartment, and his clothes- including the ones he was wearing, to his chagrin (he was forced to wear a towel), and this time, when he made something to eat for dinner, he made sure that he cleaned up his messes. Naruto had snuck out of the bedroom to peer at his handiwork, and apparently deemed his cleaning skills satisfactory, for he had darted back into his room, throwing quick glances at the newspapered windows. He noticed that unlike yesterday, Naruto seemed to have a bit more energy, judging by his quicker movements and attentiveness to things around him, so the candy bars must be helpful.

That night, as he readied himself for bed, he dreaded what he would have to do to get Naruto to come to the Academy- but he hoped he wouldn't have to get too violent about it.

--

Umino Iruka greeted his colleagues amiably as he entered his empty classroom, placing a stack of papers on his desk before sitting down in the seat. Today he planned to explain chakra manipulation, though he imagined all the students from the clans will have already tapped into their chakra. He smiled as Mizuki entered and sat at his desk. He had been relieved to have an assistant appointed to him; training a class full of juvenile killers was not only trying- but dangerous. He couldn't begin to count how many kunai he'd had to dodge on Friday, and was planning on something less dangerous today.

The door opened, and in strolled Yamanaka Ino and Haruno Sakura, both looking excited and talkative, and they were quickly followed by other students. He watched as the always rowdy Inuzuka Kiba entered, trailed by Nara Shikamaru, who looked half awake, and a hungry looking Akimichi Chouji. Several other students wandered in along with Hyuuga Hinata and Aburame Shino, before Sasuke appeared. Iruka was instantly relieved to see him; he didn't like the idea that the grieving boy might be spending his time alone- away from the other students. Though, the way those dark eyes stared ahead, it seemed that the boy was alone, whether he was around people or not.

To his surprise, closely following Sasuke was a hooded child, small and apparently trying to disappear, his/her head down, with strands of yellow hair hanging over the face, so that the only thing he could tell was that the child's skin was very pale. He/she moved along behind Sasuke almost like he was cuffed to him, and before he could be startled that Sasuke wasn't mad that his personal space was being violated, he was surprised when the child sat next to him, head still bowed.

Had Sasuke made a friend? He glanced around to see that all the other students were equally as curious as he, and Yamanaka and Haruno leaned forward in their seats, eyes riveted on the two. Iruka got from his seat and stood in front of the two, smiling benignly down at the newcomer.

"Hello. I didn't know we were receiving a new student," he greeted, and glanced down at the attendance sheet, looking for a new name. "I'm Umino Iruka, your sen-'' words died in his mouth as his eyes spied the name sitting comfortably next to Sasuke's: Uzumaki Naruto. His eyes lifted from the page and he stared at the hunched boy, taking in the hooded countenance, the air of misery that hovered over the small, quivering form. Sasuke was glancing at his seat- mate, then looking at him, eyes suspicious, while Uzumaki continued to stare down at the desk top. "I- I'm you sensei. You can call me Iruka or Umino sensei." He quickly moved from before them and sat down at his desk, taking the rag from his back pocket and wiping his perspiring forehead.

The last time he had seen the vessel of the Kyuubi, he had been a mere infant in the Hokage's arms; he remembered staring curiously down at the sleeping child and thinking that he looked nothing like a monster. After that, time moved on and he hadn't heard of the boy since- hadn't really thought of him, and hadn't heard anyone speak of him. As a matter of fact, he'd probably assumed that the child had been sent elsewhere to live. And yet, here he was, obviously terrified to be there, not even looking when he had addressed him- not looking at anything but the desk. He could feel the sheer fright coming off the child, and it was clear that it was sheer will that kept him in his seat- or it was Sasuke, because as he looked now, the Uchiha leaned toward Uzumaki slightly and murmured something to him. There was no response, or movement for that matter, and Sasuke seemed only marginally satisfied with whatever the response might have been.

And so he gave a short discourse on chakra, handed out worksheets, information on chakra and its uses with forty questions attached to it (which made most of the students groan), while Mizuki took attendance and all but balked at what he imagined was Uzumaki's name, judging by the incredulous glances he was sending his way, which Iruka dearly wished he wouldn't, because Sasuke, always a keen observer, was glancing up from his worksheet every now and then, looking at both him and Mizuki, but mostly Mizuki since he was staring so hard at poor Uzumaki.

Thankfully, the class settled down to silent groans of reading and to the sound of pencils moving across paper. Ino and Sakura seemed half preoccupied with work, and at staring at Sasuke and Naruto. Even his own eyes returned to the two, and he noticed that Naruto was busy writing, and at a speed that said he must know something or two about chakra- or that he had read the paragraphs carefully. The former made him nervous- the latter said that he would be a good student. His eyes zeroed in on the boy's hand, and he noticed, quite oddly too, that his fingers were very bony looking- brittle actually, with pale almost translucent fingernails, and the hands had a fine tremor running through them. He couldn't tell much by the large hoodie, but the boy did seem rather small, and he wondered what kind of treatment this child got- being what he was- or more like, what he had inside of him.

He glanced at Sasuke and wondered if they were friends, or if the Hokage had asked him to chaperone Naruto for the day- but that seemed unlikely, because Sasuke would glance at Naruto every few minutes, as if making sure everything was going all right with him. So it said that they must be at least associates of some kind- though he wondered for how long.

Forty-five minutes later, the last of them had at least finished, or had given up, and he watched as Ino and Sakura got up from their seats and moved to Sasuke.

"Hey Sasuke-kun! Whose your new friend?" Ino inquired loudly, and Sasuke only gave her a half shrug of his shoulders and stared down at his worksheet. Ino moved to Naruto's side, Sakura following behind her, and placed an arm on Uzumaki's shoulders. "Hey, who are-''

Naruto jerked violently away from her, his head flipped up, and Iruka was able to see some of his face that wasn't concealed by hair. Hollow, pale, watery blue eyes, sunken cheekbones under stretched pallid skin. At the same time Sasuke jumped up in his seat and snarled quite viciously, "Get away from us."

Ino and Sakura jumped back, faces stunned, and the class stared at Sasuke, who glared back coldly until most of the students looked away. Kiba, Shikamaru, and Shino stared curiously at the angry Uchiha, until he sat down and laced his hands before his face, elbows on the table. Uzumaki was staring down at the table again, but he had moved even closer to Sasuke, which the dark-haired boy did not protest to, and a small bony hand came up to smooth the hoodie down to conceal his face.

The boy looked like he was starving.

--

They were released for lunch in three hours, to stretch their legs and fill their stomaches- or everyone except Naruto's. Though he had brought a candy bar along with his own lunch, Naruto seemed too terrified to eat. He sat next to Sasuke under a tree, sitting too close and shaking terribly. He blamed Yamanaka for this. Naruto had been doing okay; he'd even discovered that he was a genius, judging by the way he answered those questions, and wondered what clan he had come from and what had happened to them. Then Yamanaka had to come over and intrude, and now Naruto seemed even worse than before; his skin was grey, and his eyes had gone to this empty, glassy look.

"Sasuke, I want to go home," Naruto rasped, lifting his head up and turned his sad eyes on him.

Sasuke grimaced. "There's only a few hours left- why don't you wait?"

But Naruto shook his head, eyes shut tightly and tears squeezed out of them. "Please Sasuke?" His voice sounded like broken glass. Sasuke sighed and dropped his half eaten sandwich back into its wrapper and stood up.

"Come on," he muttered as he headed back to the apartment, Naruto following too closely.

--

While the children went out to lunch, he went over their sheets, annoyed by the stupid answers that Kiba gave, to the half-assed answers Shikamaru wrote- just a hint of his intelligence then nothing. Chouji's had oil marks on his while Shino's was short and to the point. Hinata's read as timid as she sounded, and Ino had apparently copied off of Sakura. Sasuke's was very good, he was of a genius clan- but Naruto's...he had to blink several times to stare incredulously at the fine lettered print. Naruto's was a dissertation- more elaborate than the paragraphs on the first paper; it had theories, examples, and most of the words he had used were multi-syllabic. The _voice_ of these answers were not of a six year old- but of a scholar.

He stared at the empty desk where Uzumaki had sat, and wondered- just for a second, who or what occupied the space in the child's head. The door opened and the children returned, and he immediately noticed that Sasuke returned alone.

The boy seemed in a most sour mood, periodically glaring back at Ino and Sakura enough that both girls knew that he was angry with them. He held his tongue until class was over, then called Sasuke over to his desk.

"Have a seat, Sasuke," he gestured toward the seat in front of him, and the Uchiha glared at it before deciding to sit down. "Is Naruto alright? He didn't return to class."

Sasuke gave him a steady look, before his eyes darted away and he tried his best to give an empty face while he shrugged. "He wasn't feeling well."

"I see," Iruka murmured, feeling worry course through him. "Are you and Naruto friends?"

Surprisingly, Sasuke blushed and looked decidedly embarrassed before turning his face into a scowl. "Yes..."

Iruka hesitated then. "Is...is he getting enough to eat?"

Sasuke turned his gaze from over his shoulder to looking directly at him, eyes searching his face- for what, he could only imagine. Perhaps it would be a long time before he felt he could trust anyone again.

"I can't get him to eat- he won't eat, and when he does, he throws it up," Sasuke admitted grudgingly, darting wary looks at him.

Iruka sat back in his chair, staring at the boy thoughtfully. "How long has he been that way?"

"I dunno, maybe for years," he replied with a nonchalant shrug.

"What have you been feeding him?"

"Regular food."

Iruka scratched his nose thoughtfully. "Try soups, regular food may be too heavy on the stomach for one that doesn't eat often, okay?"

Sasuke nodded and moved to his feet, heading quickly for the door. When the room was empty but for him, he graded papers and mulled over what the Uchiha had told him. Uzumaki Naruto was either starving from neglect- or starving himself through some mental instability. He couldn't imagine that the Hokage would let this happen though... He roughly check-marked Kiba's foolish answers, then realized that it was way past time for him to leave- the sun had set.

He packed up, and was about to head home, when he thought of Naruto again. What was his home life like? He glanced back at the roster and searched for Naruto's address. Writing it down, he headed for Ichiraku's, getting a simple broth with small grains of rice floating in it and headed for the Uzumaki residence.

The apartment complex was decent, if a bit drab, and it seemed almost empty- not as noisy as his own apartment was. He headed for 057, and immediately caught sight of the newspapered windows. He stood before them and stared. Why were they newspapered?

He knocked on the door, waiting patiently as he heard silent footsteps approach, then the chain and bolt was released and the door cracked open, a black eye peering out at him, before the door opened fully and a blast of chemical cleanser assaulted him. Sasuke stood in the doorway, looking completely startled at his presence.

"I thought I'd stop by and bring soup-" he said by way of greeting as he invited himself in and took off his sandals, then stood there, taking the apartment in. "Whoa."

Sasuke shut the door behind him and gave him a look of complete chagrin. "He's not going to like this."

At that moment, a hooded Naruto stepped out of the bedroom door, eyes falling on him, and that small bony face turned sickly with horror. His mouth opened, Iruka braced himself for a scream, but only a rasp came out, and he retreated back into the room. Sasuke sighed and took the bowl of soup from him.

"I think he thinks you're going to kill him- he thinks everyone's going to kill him."

Iruka winced at the boy, then stared about the apartment. It was clean- cleaner than a hospital room, but with that strange sickly smell that let you know that this wasn't a happy place. "Why are there newspaper on the windows?"

Sasuke glanced at the windows warily then shrugged. There was a thump from the bedroom and both moved toward the door. Naruto was pacing the room, stepping over fallen stacks of books, breath ragged, eyes wild as he pulled at his hair. His hood had fallen, revealing long shoulder length hair, weak and brittle looking. He stopped pacing as his eyes fell on him, and he flinched away from the accusatory fear in the boy's eyes. Naruto jerked into the corner, whimpering and muttering incoherent words under his unsteady breath, eyes trained upon him.

Sasuke stepped into the room, showing Naruto the bowl of soup."It's just Iruka-sensei, Naruto. He brought you soup so you won't throw up."

Naruto shook his head vigorously, pulling out large strands of his hair. Iruka took a step forward, and Naruto threw himself against the wall, eyes all but bulging from his head. Iruka stepped back, and Sasuke turned to him.

"He doesn't like people coming in here," he looked down at the bowl of soup. "I'll give this to him tomorrow...maybe you should leave before he kills himself." Naruto had slid to the floor and curled up in the fetal position. Iruka pursed his lips and left the room, then stopped in the living room, eyes vacantly focused on the covered windows. The door shut behind him, and Sasuke moved past him and placed the bowl on the kitchen table.

"How long have you and Naruto been living together?" He had seen several signs that Sasuke was a resident here.

"A coupla days," Sasuke muttered, never turning to look at him. Iruka nodded and headed for the door.

"I'll see both of you tomorrow."

He saw Sasuke nod as he shut the door behind him. He needed to see the Hokage. Immediately.

**TBC**

**I know that Sasuke talks much more than most are used to, but he hasn't had several years of loneliness to get his complete antisocial behavior, so he talks more. Naruto doesn't like to talk at all. **


	4. Chapter 4

Disclaimer: Naruto does not belong to Kirsdarkenvar

**Sorry for any spelling or grammatical errors; this chapter is un-beta'd.**

**The Ghost and the Darkness**

**Chapter Four**

Naruto, as it turned out, was a slave to routine. Sasuke found that doing the same thing everyday at the same time was comforting to Naruto, and he was more likely to do it if he had at least done it twice. Getting him to attend the Ninja Academy that first week had been a trial; Naruto had put up some weak attempts to escape his grasp, even going as far as flopping down on the floor and refusing to get up. Sasuke had to drag him out of the apartment, a thoroughly embarrassing ordeal- needless to say, Naruto didn't pull that one again. After that, he seemed to resign himself to the outdoors, and had even worked his cleaning schedule around so that now his days started around five in the morning, and not seven. Next to Naruto, Sasuke was now the cleanest to-be ninja in Konoha, and had heard several of his classmates whisper that both of them smelled like detergent. This both annoyed and pleased Sasuke, mainly because Naruto being around him gave him a completely valid excuse to get Ino and Sakura to leave him alone.

Naruto didn't like anyone within seven feet of him, that included seats as well, so to Sasuke's delight, he was able to hiss at anyone who sat any closer than three seats from them, and Iruka-sensei didn't contradict him. Needless to say, Naruto wasn't a favorite amongst the female population of the class, with his shady hood and his bowed head and darting eyes. But Naruto didn't make a fuss in class- or outside in general, not wanting to make a scene and have his imaginary enemies notice him (though the girls in class weren't so imaginary...)

Many other things were going well too, such as Naruto's eating habits. He had refused to eat the soup Iruka-sensei had brought-actually he refused to do a lot of things after Iruka-sensei's visit, like moving, for an instance- or answering him when he asked him if he was alright, but he'd been determined to get some kind of soup down Naruto's throat though, so he had gone out and bought multiple cans of soup. And after explaining carefully to Naruto that there was no _way_ they could poison the soup unless they planned to poison everyone in Konoha- and there was no way they could know that the soup was for him, Naruto acquiesced and slowly and cautiously drank the soup. It had gone down so well in fact, that Naruto now had one bowl of soup everyday at lunch time. This meant, however, that they had to return to the apartment during lunch break- because Naruto didn't like to eat in front of people, and had whispered that he didn't want anyone to know that he liked the soup- or they _would_ poison it.

In the few weeks with Naruto, Sasuke found himself becoming quite creative with Naruto's weird habits. He made them run home during the break, and timed their arrival with a stop watch, and since Naruto was such a night owl, they did most of their training when Konoha was asleep. They jogged around the park at first, and it had been abysmal; Naruto was too weak to do anything more than a power walk in the beginning- and for short periods of time as well, but after weeks of repetition, Naruto was able to do a steady jog. His bony arms and legs began to show a bit of definition, and he had gained a bit of weight on some of the more fattier soups- he'd managed to get him to eat broth- though that had been a one time ordeal. Naruto apparently had a rather violent aversion to meat, so violent in fact, that he had bled out of his mouth, having bitten down hard on his tongue.

Sasuke had been going to Iruka-sensei for occasional advice, since the chuunin instructor seemed to have taken an instant liking to Naruto, and _he_ had suggested that if he couldn't get Naruto to eat meat, then he should get him protein pills as supplements and maybe more carbohydrates. At his blank stare, Iruka-sensei had drawn up a list of breads and noodles. The noodles had been an immeditae failure; Naruto wouldn't even look at the bowl, and ever since the egg sandwich, Naruto wouldn't eat bread. So Sasuke had to be creative, and he'd soaked the bread in Naruto's rice soup one evening until it had turned to mush, and though Naruto had been terribly suspicious, he still ate it.

Naruto was a good taijutsu training partner, to Sasuke's secret delight. There'd been the first training episode, when Sasuke had shown him some moves, and had gotten him to emulate them, but when he accidently hit Naruto, the blond had given him such a wounded look, he'd thought that would be the end of taijutsu training. But the next evening, when he started the training again, Naruto had begun to quickly evade his moves. Naruto was surprisingly fast, and was so phobic of touch, that he could possibly be a master in the art of evasion.

Evasion.

Perhaps Naruto _was_ a master of evasion. He evaded questions, he evaded answers, he evaded _people, _he evaded_ life_. The very apartment was evasion; Sasuke always felt like he had left Konoha whenever he returned there, he felt like Sasuke, and not Uchiha Sasuke, last member of his clan. The only thing Naruto asked of him was that he give him his clothes to clean _everyday_, shut the doors quickly lest _they_ get in (who _they_ were, he'd never know) and to clean up all his messes. Naruto didn't demand that he be great, or smart- Naruto was clearly smarter than he was anyway- and he didn't seem to know or care about why Sasuke had suddenly moved in with him, or if he had any relatives that were worried about him. Naruto didn't seem to know anything more than his small apartment and the patterns on his desk at the Academy. And he supposed this evasiveness was exactly how Naruto liked his world- though by Sasuke's standards, it was a miserable world.

After a solid month of roommating with Naruto, Sasuke could say that he knew Naruto well, well enough in fact to see that something was upsetting him, something that made him revert back to not eating, and making a fuss again about going outside. He'd been awakened twice by Naruto talking to himself too loudly, which he hated, because Naruto always sounded like he was talking to someone particularly hateful.

--

Naruto stood in the the living room, pale blue eyes focused on the newspapered windows. His pale face held a sheen of sweat, and his breath was short. In his shaky hands was a basket full of his and Sasuke clothes; he normally didn't like washing both of theirs together, but Sasuke was a whole lot cleaner now than when he had first moved in, and he no longer minded. He no longer minded when the place smelled like foreign food, or that Sasuke made noises that he wasn't used to, or that an extra cloth and towel now hung in the bathroom. _They_ had been right, Sasuke wasn't so bad, Sasuke was even _nice_ to him, and didn't hit him unless they were training, and didn't call him a monster- even though he knew he was.

Unfortunately, he imagined that Sasuke might hit him today, when he woke up. When this was all over, Sasuke would be hitting him a lot, and his eyes clouded over with tears. A shadow, a shape of a man, came in front of window, and Naruto dropped the basket with a gasp, backing up. Another joined the first, and muffled voices drifted through the glass and newspaper.

"This the place?" the voice was hollow, tired, and he imagined that if it had color, it would be a fuzzy grey.

"Yes," this voice would be an angry red, perhaps streaked with bruising purple. "This is where the little bastard lives."

Naruto stumbled to the bedroom, shutting it quickly behind him, ignoring Sasuke's questioning grumble as he lifted his head at his entrance.

_**We'llkillthemdestroythemteartheirbodiesapartbleedthemdrysprinkletheearthwiththeirsouls.**_

Naruto dropped to his knees as visions assailed him, he was so tall, above Konoha while it burned, the feeling of small bodies being torn apart, crushed by his limps. There was blood in his mouth- blood of hundreds, and he gurgled, crashing to his knees, pulling at his hair so that he could suppress his screams. If the villagers knew he was in here...

"Naruto!" There were fingers digging into his, prying them from his hair, and he looked up with a sob to see Sasuke's frightened face, tormented with confusion. "What's the matter? You're pulling out your hair-stop!"

Sasuke was so much stronger than he, and he was forced to release his hair. Sasuke moved away from him, probably disgusted, and he crawled to his corner, sobbing. He didn't think he could take anymore of this. He sat back on his pillow and sobbed, vision blurred by tears, and he could only see a dark blur in front of him before something came over his mouth, and he blinked rapidly so he could see. Sasuke had a handful of paper towels, and he was wiping his mouth, and he realized that he was mopping up blood. Sasuke's face was pinched, dark eyes wide, but he seemed focused on wiping the blood from Naruto's mouth and chin until there was none left, and all Naruto could do was sit there, drained, and watch as Sasuke scrubbed the spots of blood on the carpet with cold water and bleach. He seemed very intent on that too, and Naruto imagined that Sasuke was embarrassed to be with him, which shouldn't have made him any more sadder than he already was, but it made fresh tears course down his face anyway.

Sasuke left to toss the bloody paper towels away, but fear that the villagers were still out there spurred Naruto to cry out, "Don't! They'll see you!"

Sasuke paused in the doorway and turned to look at him. "Who'll see me?" His voice was empty and unassuming.

Naruto drew his knees to his chest and hugged them, staring fearfully at the dark haired boy. "Th-the villagers."

Sasuke's shoulders slumped and his eyes rolled in exasperation. "This again? No ones here to kill you Naruto! How many times do I have to tell you?" and Naruto watched as he angrily stomped away. Naruto dropped his head onto his knees and remained that way; _They_ were echoing through his head, an angry cacophany of visions, blood, and death- and so much hate, that he feared he would either vomit it up or choke on it, and he pressed a hand to his mouth to keep from doing either.

When Sasuke returned, he had the basket of clothes that he had intended to wash, had apparently showered, and Naruto watched in horror as he put the clothes on. Naruto wanted to protest, but he didn't want to draw Sasuke's wrath upon him- though he knew it was inevitable, and Sasuke was going to be very angry with him in a few minutes anyway.

Sasuke stood over him and folded his arms, eyeing him, and realization blossoming in his eyes.

"We _are_ going to the Academy today," he stated, and narrowed his eyes at Naruto's vehement shake of head. Sasuke's face went pale, his lips turned into an angry white line, but to Naruto's complete surprise, he turned abruptly on his heels and headed for the door. "Fine. Stay in here. All. By. Yourself." The door slammed shut behind him, and soon after, the front door too. Pain bloomed right behind his left eye, flashes of red and black light coloring the vision, and Naruto crawled weakly under the bed.

Didn't Sasuke know? All by himself was just going back to normal- going back to nothing.

--

The next few days were lousy for Sasuke. He'd gotten so used to Naruto being with him at the Academy, that having an empty seat next to him was not only unnerving, but annoying as all hell too. It seemed, in Naruto's absence, that Ino and Sakura were back to annoying him, and he didn't have Naruto's jumpiness to warn them away with. They kept asking questions about him, wondering if he was going to come back, and clearly hoping he wasn't. Iruka-sensei was also asking questions, and had even volunteered to check up on him, but Sasuke had declined the offer, reminding him that Naruto didn't like visitors. The only visitor he seemed to tolerate was the Hokage, who was too damn cheerful for both their liking. He just didn't know what was up with Naruto, these last few days. It was like he had completely converted to the first few days they had met- not going outside, not eating anymore, staying in the room.

As a matter of fact, and this gave Sasuke pause as he pulled out the key to the door, Naruto had stopped cleaning. He lifted his head and stared at the door. Naruto had stopped _cleaning_. Voices caught his attention, and he noticed some villagers down below, a woman, carrying a kimono for the Fall Festival, which also coincided with the Kyuubi no Kitsune Memorial Service for those who had lost their lives fight the fox demon. It was a festival that he had enjoyed going to, and briefly wondered if he would go again- and if it was possible to get Naruto to go with him... Sasuke unlocked the door and entered, a whiff a cleanser comforting him, though it wasn't as strong as it used to be, since Naruto had stopped cleaning. The thought made him nervous. Locking the door behind him and taking off his sandals, he headed for the bedroom.

His eyes fell immediately on Naruto. He looked bad. He was curled up the corner, red-rimmed eyes wide, face so pale he could see the veins underneath the skin, and he was shaking badly, as if he were standing out in the cold. His blue eyes fell on him, and they were so full of despair. "They're coming," he rasped, and as Sasuke opened his mouth in exasperation, something entirely unexpected happened. There was a loud crash in the livingroom, sounding like broken glass, shocking him as Naruto scrambled under the bed.

It was probably the most shameful moment in Sasuke's to-be ninja career, and he couldn't exactly remember how he had gotten under the bed with Naruto so fast. One moment, he had been at the bed room door- the next, under the bed next to a silently weeping Naruto. His heart was pounding in his ears, and at first, all he could hear was the sound of his quick breaths. Something hit the walls of the apartment, and both he and Naruto jumped in response.

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry," Naruto gurgled around his sobs, eyes shut tight, but the tears manage to leak through. Sasuke took a deep breath and pulled out a kunai from his hip holster.

"Stay here," he whispered, "I'm going out to s-" he was cut off as Naruto's eyes snapped open and a thin hand gripped his wrist tightly.

"Please don't leave," Naruto pleaded, and Sasuke shook his head and crawled from under the bed, pulling loose of Naruto's startling grip. "Please don't leave, Sasuke, _please."_ Naruto's pleas were heart breaking, but Sasuke had to go see what the danger was. Naruto became silent, as he approached the bedroom door.

Sasuke eased the door open and peeked out. The window was broken, bits of glass and newspaper littered the floor, and he noticed a large brick and several rocks also littered the floor.

"_You fucking monster_!" A voice shrieked out, and Sasuke jumped, eyes darting to the window. "Come out you bastard," Something sailed through and shattered against the wall, and he saw that it was a beer bottle. Sasuke slipped through the doorway and crouched carefully along the floor so he was not visible via the window, and when he came to its side, he peeked out.

Quite to his disbelief, and his mouth did fall comically open, there actually were villagers down on the ground, six of them, all looking red in the face and royally pissed. They had rocks and broken bricks in their hands- one even had a kunai, and tossed it at the broken window. It missed the apartment entirely, letting him know that this man wasn't a shinobi. But what did they want? One villager was cursing up a storm, tossing out some pretty horrible threats that seemed to please his cohorts, and all the while he used words like 'monster' and 'demon.'

Were they talking about Naruto? What could Naruto have possibly done to these men? Sasuke felt the blood drain from his face. Had Naruto been telling the truth, warning him all along? Could it be that there really were villagers after him, trying to kill him? Another rock flew through the window and bounced off the wall, and at last the men seemed to have blown off all their steam, and they turned away and left the complex. Sasuke took a deep breath and called out to Naruto.

"They're gone now."

Naruto's head appeared at the bottom of the doorway, his face was red and wet with tears, his lips were bloody, but there was relief in his frightened blue eyes. They looked at him, then at the mess in the living room, and his face scrunched up, and more tears came as he climbed to his feet. Sasuke watched grimly as he moved into the kitchen, opened the the cabinet under the sink, and pulled out a square plank of wood, a hammer, and some nails. This had apparently happened before.

Togther, they nailed the wood over the broken window, cleaned up the glass and rabble, and after Naruto completely cleaned kitchen, livingroom, and bathroom, retired to the bedroom. There, he helped Naruto tape more newspaper to the window, and built up the courage to ask, "Why were they attacking us?"

Naruto's face crumbled as he smoothed the newspaper down with bony hands. "Because I'm a monster," he whispered as he silently cried.

When that was finished, Sasuke thought it might be nice to try and calm Naruto down, and him too, so he pulled out the thousand piece puzzle he had packed, and they began to put it together. And though Naruto actually seemed intrigued by the puzzled, he never stopped shaking, and he never stopped crying- it was as if his tear ducts were on auto-drip.

Sasuke's fist that rested on his knee tightened. Naruto wasn't crazy, Naruto was scared, because people were trying to kill him. But why? Naruto was so afraid of people- his own shadow made him nervous! Rage filled him. Naruto had been alone the last time this had happened. Then shamed filled him. He'd been telling Sasuke that the villagers were trying to get him, and he hadn't believed him.

Some friend he was.

--

The next day, Sasuke was awakened to shouts, and the crash of brick on wood, and he jumped out of bed quickly, eyes darting around for Naruto. He leaned over and peeked under the bed, and there Naruto was, eyes shut, hands gripping his hair and whispering to himself. Sasuke pulled out his kunai and slipped out door, eyes immediately falling on the splintered plank lying on the carpet and the large brick. He peeked out the side of the window and glared at the villagers- the same ones from yesterday, except they had been joined by several others. Sasuke gripped the kunai and wondered if he would be able to hit one of them when quite to his surprise, an Anbu popped up, standing on the rails, arms folded across a broad chest as he stared down at the villagers.

Sasuke watched in utter fascination as the villager's faces went from rage to instant fear, and they quickly retreated. Sasuke stared at the Anbu's back in awe, admiring the sheer power of his simple presence; it was the most brilliant thing he had ever seen. If he could have that kind of presence...if he could inspire such fear...

He leaned down and picked up the wood, and quickly nailed it over the window, not wanting the Anbu to see him. After that, he made soup for the both of them, and had to drag Naruto from under the bed. He looked worse than yesterday; his eyes couldn't seem to stay focused, darting about in his sockets. It frightened Sasuke, and he decided that the last thing he wanted to do was leave for the Academy and opted to stay.

That night, Naruto became violently sick, and began to throw up constantly, so they both spent most of it in the bathroom, with Naruto bent over the toilet. It left Sasuke raw and on edge by the time morning arrived, and the sounds of the Fall Festival pulling in full swing didn't seem to help Naruto any. Instead, it seemed ot make him more crazed.

"Please stop," Naruto rasped around a raw throat, cradling his head and rocking back and forth. Sasuke sat on the tub rim, eyes darting between Naruto and the sounds of voices approaching the apartment. "Please just stop," Naruto sobbed. "I didn't do anything- I didn't do anything to anybody. Please don't say that," he was pulling at his hair again, talking to that mean person in his head again.

Something hit the door, a voice shouted, and that was it.

That was it.

Sasuke leaped up from the tub and rushed at the door, pulling out his kunai and he threw aside the locks, snarling as he threw open the door, because he was too angry to form anything intelligent. There was a man there, his fist raised as if he was about to pound on the door again, his mouth opened in an 'o' of surprise. Sasuke gave another gutteral snarl and swung the kunai. The man jumped back, but Sasuke managed to nick him on the neck, and the man back-pedaled over the railing and fell three stories to the ground. The angry villagers hushed with shock, one rushing to the man as Sasuke jumped on the railing and prepared himself for a jump, but to his surprise, the villagers gathered up the motionless man and retreated as quickly as they had when the Anbu appeared.

Sasuke blinked rapidly as the adrenaline drained from him, watching them retreat, and he stumbled off of the railing, taking deep breaths as he backed into the apartment and shut the door. Leaning against it, he laughed, laughed like he was laughing for the first time. He felt good. No- he felt _powerful, _like that Anbu, like he _was_ that Anbu.

Sasuke laughed, running a hand through his hair, until he could laugh no more, and Naruto returned to his thoughts. As he headed for the bathroom, he admitted to himself that he clearly felt like he had passed some kind of test, and as he crouched over Naruto, gripping him in a head-lock so that he would stop banging his head into the tiled floor, he promised himself- _and_ Naruto, to power.

To absolute power.

**TBC**

**I want to clear this up right away before anyone asks: This is not a slash fic. So some of you that are worried, fear not. Those that are disappointed- sorry! I know this chapter was shorter than previous one- but I feel it was the most important.**


	5. Chapter 5

Disclaimer: Naruto does not belong to Kirsdarkenvar

**Chapter Five**

There was blood everywhere, on the walls, on the floor, on the ceiling, on him. It was as if he had bathed in it, rolled around and smeared it all over his body until his very eyeballs were coated. Naruto's eyes rolled madly in their sockets as he tried to avoid looking at the pulsing body parts that littered his bedroom. There was a man's head on the bed, a man with dark hair and eyes, staring at him accusingly. On the floor below the man's head was a heart- perhaps his heart- pulsating madly, trying to pump blood through the aortas to arteries that no longer existed. Instead, it squirted droplets of blood onto the already drenched carpet. Across the room, intestines writhed around the book cases in a macabre dance, and it seemed to move to the same beat as the heart. He wasn't sure if the images were real or fake, but he was sure that he didn't care- he was frightened all the same.

There was laughter in his head, and the _Voices_ looked out through his blood coated eyes and roared _Their_ amusement, but mostly it was rage. The head on his bed opened its mouth, its mouthed moved, and brown words puffed out, the color of rusted blood, and they floated toward him, wretched he imagined, if he could read at the moment. He was temporarily struck dumb, and the only thing he understood about the words were that they would hurt when they touched him.

He was curled up on his pillow, hands forever smashed against his ears, a vain attempt at blocking the angry _Voices_ and _Their_ malicious laughter, _Their_ anger against the walls of his mind, in which _They_ were trapped.

Between the terror and pain, random thoughts would come to him, like that it was October, his most hated month, or that he had urinated on himself. He wanted to wash badly, but every time he removed his hands from his ears, it felt like claws were scraping against his brain, and he knew he was screaming something unnatural.

A severed hand skittered across the crimson carpet.

Occasionally, when he wasn't in so much pain, and the random thoughts seemed to cease, he would find a dark-haired boy crouching before him- _a_ _villager_!- his mind would scream, and he would whimper and wish the unknown villager away. Blackened words would puff out of his mouth, twisted with gray, and he even thought, between screaming and wishing there wasn't a wall behind him, that the boy looked clearly distressed. Then he would go away, and Naruto would return to staring at the severed head, who spit rusted words at him, hating him with his eyes.

The boy reappeared in his vision, and had a paper towel in his hands, a wet one, and he wiped his face and mouth, and tried to pull his hands from his ears, but he didn't want his brains to be clawed up again, and fought to keep them pressed to his ears.

He wished the villager would go away.

--

He'd heard his family, relatives, and other people in general refer to Hell. They'd say, "Go to Hell!" or "this is Hell" or "I must be in Hell" and he hadn't thought much on it, except that Hell was apparently an unpleasant place and no one liked it- or wanted to go there. So surely, Sasuke reasoned, this must be Hell. Somehow, he and Naruto, had been sentenced to Hell, and there was apparently no date of release.

Sasuke hovered in the doorway, staring at his roommate, Naruto, who did not seem to recognize him anymore. They had been roommates for more than a month, they had become comfortable in their routine, and it all seemed to have faded in one moment.

Naruto writhed on the pillow, fresh blood smeared all over his sweater and hands from his mouth and the multiple scratches that ran down the sides of his face. His nails had been scratching his scalp raw, pulling out strands of his hair so that it littered the area where he lay. It had been four days since he had swung the kunai at the unknown man, (and he only briefly wondered if the man was dead) and since then, Naruto had been a mess. He refused to move from the pillowed corner, would not eat, would not clean- he wouldn't even move to use the bathroom. Sasuke had attempted to drag him to the bathroom, but the mere sight of him seemed to drive Naruto insane. He had screamed, a high pitched keen that had made him leap back in fear.

Once he had caught sight of Naruto's eyes, and it seemed that some of the capillaries had popped, leaving his eyes bloody and leaking, and if they weren't constantly rolling in their sockets, they were frozen on the bed, staring at something. It was the reason why Sasuke hadn't slept on the bed since this all began.

Then, there were the words, grating and thick, slurred around the blood that gurgled and trickled from his mouth. They were frightening, angry, and often enough, it didn't sound like Naruto.

"It's only a matter of time," Naruto hissed suddenly between a whimper, and Sasuke stepped into the reeking room. "We'll be free- it's only a matter of time. Nothing lasts forever." The voice coming from Naruto's bloody mouth was like nails on chalkboard and Sasuke brushed the goosebumps on his arms as he moved to where the books sat, lining the wall in neat piles. It was the spot he had been occupying for the last four days, because Naruto didn't seem to notice him there, only when he was directly in front of him. He'd tried wiping his face and mouth, tried pulling his hands from where they covered his ears and dug into his scalp, but Naruto was terrified of him.

"Nothing lasts forever," Naruto whispered again, his bloodshot eyes seemed to follow something along the floor, but Sasuke could only see carpet.

He sighed, rubbing his exhausted eyes and tried to tune out Naruto's constant whimpers as he settled in for another Hell-like day. He hadn't returned to the Academy since this had all started, too scared to leave Naruto alone in the apartment in case the villagers returned, and he half expected Iruka-sensei to come and inquire about their absences- but he imagined that the chunin was too busy enjoying that stupid Fall Festival, in which he blamed for all his current troubles. Right now he could be training, getting stronger, advancing faster than any other Academy student- but no, he was stuck inside the apartment, with Naruto, and somehow he just knew it was all the festival's fault.

He just didn't know why.

--

"Sasuke?"

He was awakened by the sound of his name, and his eyes jerked open, blinking blearily at the blob in the corner until they managed to focus. Naruto was on his hands and knees, bloodshot watery blue eyes darting around the room, looking lost, as if he hadn't a clue where he was. His lanky hair was matted with blood and dirt, his ears and cheeks scratched and crusted with dried blood and scabs. There was dried blood running along his neck and staining his grey sweater along with his hands. He looked like he had gotten in a fight with a girl- a particularly vicious girl.

Sasuke sat up with a groan, realizing once again that he had fallen asleep on top of the books.

"Naruto?" he replied hesitantly, unsure if Naruto would recognize him after a full week of screaming when his eyes fell upon him, or when he approached. Naruto's eyes fluttered in a very familiar way as he continued to look about the room in confusion. He opened his mouth, and Sasuke could see that his tongue and teeth were coated in blood. "I'll get some water," he muttered, quickly exiting the reeking room and getting a glass of water. As he was about to exit the kitchen, he paused to grab a candy bar. Naruto hadn't eaten in a week, and would no doubt be hungry. When he re-entered the room, Naruto was pulling at the front of his sweater with his index finger and thumb, looking thoroughly disgusted with his appearance.

"Here," Sasuke held the glass near Naruto's face, startling the blond who blinked up at him then crawled away from the glass. As he moved, Sasuke got a whiff of blood and urine, and he grimaced as Naruto crawled out of the room and headed straight for the bathroom- which would clearly be a relief for both of them. Under normal circumstances, he would crack open a window, but he was leery of that scenario, it not being safe and all.

The sound of the shower turning on was music to his ears and he dragged Naruto's soiled pillow out of the room and into the hamper. He was awash with relief- things would get back to normal, he believed, as he put the candy bar away and pulled out a can of soup. They would get back to training at nights and studying in class during the day, he thought gleefully as the soup heated on the stove.

The soup was happily warmed by the time Naruto emerged from the bathroom in a fresh gray sweater and dark green pants. He wobbled into the kitchen, darting nervous glances at him as he bent over and pulled cleanser out of the cupboard under the sink.

"Nuh-uh," Sasuke shut the cupboard and dragged a weak Naruto over to the table where the steaming bowl of soup sat. "Eat first," he commanded. Naruto blinked and hovered over the bowl before he took the spoon and sipped carefully, eyes moving to the window that was boarded. Sasuke grimaced- he didn't know how he would get it fixed without calling in a professional outsider. "We're going to have to get that window fixed. How'd you fix it before?"

Naruto stared dully at the soup, but jumped when a knock came from the door, and quickly staggered back into the bedroom. Sasuke pulled out a kunai and threw open the door, prepared to put up a fight, and taking a step back when he saw that it was the Hokage. He gave a half-bow to the man and stepped back again, allowing the elder to enter the apartment. The Hokage's dark eyes zeroed in on the window and his face seemed to darken.

"Is Naruto alright?" he inquired in a cold tone, eyes still focused on the boarded window. Sasuke resisted the urge to back away some more, scratching his arm and shooting a nervous glance at the bedroom door.

"He's fine. Some villagers broke the window. Why?"

Sandaime rubbed his brow and sighed. "I suppose you'll have to ask Naruto about that," He glared at the window. "I'll have the window repaired while Naruto is at the Academy. Where is Naruto?"

Sasuke swallowed and resisted the urge to look at the bedroom. He didn't want the Hokage to go in there, because it smelled of urine and unwashed body, and he also didn't want him to see Naruto with his scratched, bruised and bloodshot eyes. Sasuke weighed the odds in his mind. Which would upset the Hokage more- Naruto in the smelly room, or Naruto in the living room? He rushed into the room and dropped down by the bed, reaching under it and grabbing what felt like Naruto's sweater. As he pulled, Naruto grabbed onto the bed-leg and gave a very unusual whine.

"_Naruto let go of the bed!"_ he hissed, glancing back nervously. "It's just the Hokage dammit! Let go or he'll come in here!"

Naruto released the leg as Sasuke pulled him to his feet and pulled his hood over his eyes. Sasuke, holding him by the arm, presented him to the Hokage. The old man looked Naruto over, giving a smile at the small hooded figure.

"How are you Naruto?" he asked in a kind grandfatherly voice.

Naruto's thin fingers began to wring themselves as he stared at the carpet.

"Fine," Naruto's voice broke around the word, which wasn't very reassuring, and the Hokage's sharp eyes narrowed. He took a step forward, and Naruto's face darted up to look at him, then back down, and that one glimpse was all they needed to see his scratched face. Though he was thankful that Naruto had washed away the blood, his face still looked like someone had taken gnarled wire to it. The Hokage's brows rose and his eyes moved to Sasuke's in question.

"We were sparring," Sasuke answered quickly, and felt his face redden in embarrassment. Sure if he were a girl the scratches on Naruto's face would have been believable; he'd seen Ino and Sakura resort to clawing and hair pulling in a spar- he'd laughed himself sick at the time, but the Hokage didn't look amused or like he even believed him.

"You're sensei has reported that neither of you have been in attendance at the Academy for over a week," At his words an Anbu moved into the doorway, frightening Naruto, who fled back to the room. Sasuke stared at the Anbu- it was the one from the other day- the one that had frightened the villagers away. He wore the mask of a turtle and had broad shoulders, very broad- unusual for a ninja, and Sasuke t thought that he must do more taijutsu and strength training than the other Anbu he had seen. "Sasuke?"

He looked back at the old man. The Hokage was staring quite intently at him, and he resisted the urge to cringe. "Naruto's been sick the whole week, and people have been throwing things at the apartment and shouting- and its been driving us crazy. It wasn't safe to go out." His tone bordered on accusatory, and the Hokage gave a very exhausted sigh in response, and it was clear to Sasuke, that it was going to be his only answer until he could get Naruto to say something that didn't seem crazy- though he imagined he would believe anything Naruto claimed, seeing that he had been telling the truth this whole time about the villagers wanting to kill him.

He'd believe Naruto next time.

--

Hours later the apartment was smelling like it had been bombed with bleach, to Sasuke's satisfaction, and he stood in a towel (having had all his clothes removed) and watched as Naruto put the cleaning supplies away. The bedroom had been scrubbed from wall to floor, the bed had been stripped, and the books wiped down. He had even helped Naruto re-paper the windows- even the boarded one, and had found the action strongly reassuring, though he couldn't imagine why. Now all they were waiting for was all the clothing and linen in the washing machine. Naruto returned from the kitchen looking bizarrely satisfied, with his scratched face and frail disposition. Sasuke pulled him back toward his cold soup and watched over him until he was greeted with an empty bowl and Naruto green around the edges.

When their clothing and linen finished, they both headed back to the room and he helped Naruto make up the bed, an awkward affair being that he had never made up a bed before and Naruto didn't seem to like wrinkles or pockets of air. He managed to completely complicate bed making, down to weird things like the corners must be turned in triangularly, and other inane techniques. When the clothes were either worn or put away, Sasuke opened up his box full of the family jutsu scrolls he had brought along with him when he had moved in.

"What do you know about jutsu?" he asked the hooded blond, who was back to his completely scrubbed corner, staring down at a book. Naruto's eyes darted up to him and he gave a small twitch, which he later realized was Naruto's attempt at a shrug.

"Jutsu are often the product of channeling chakra to a certain part or parts of the body -through the inner coil system, which is to chakra as blood vessels are to blood-and then manipulating it to create an effect which wouldn't be possible otherwise. If the inner coil system malfunctions or is blocked in any way, it is impossible to perform any jutsu at all. Jutsu are divided into three categories: Taijutsu: Body techniques, Genjutsu: Mind techniques, and Ninjutsu: Techniques that rely on sources beyond those. Besides these main categories there is another, more specific category: Fūin jutsu: Sealing techniques.  
Besides being either Ninjutsu, Taijutsu or Genjutsu a jutsu can also be 'Hiden' ( Secret). Hiden jutsu are jutsu passed down from generation to generation within some clans."

"Right," Sasuke blinked several times, stunned that he had managed to say all that in almost one breath. He moved from the bed and sat down in front of his roommate, separating the scrolls from the roll. "These are Katon jutsu that my family sort of specialized in, well- after the Sharingan." Naruto stared down at the jutsu, then glanced up at his eyes when he mentioned the Sharingan. "Technically anyone can get these, but we...we were particularly good with them." Sasuke stared down at the jutsu scrolls, feeling depressed after feeling so much relief that Naruto was back to normal again.

"Do you have it?" Naruto's voice interrupted his dark thoughts, though it came as a wisp of a voice. He looked up from the scrolls in surprise.

"Do I have what?"

Naruto swallowed and smoothed his hood down over his eyes.

"The Sharingan."

Sasuke felt his face flush, felt the embarrassment flood through him.

"No," he growled, then wished he hadn't when Naruto's body flinched. He rubbed his eyes roughly with the back of his hand and glared down at the scrolls. "But it won't be long 'till I have it. I'm an Uchiha."

To this, he met silence, and he glanced up to see that Naruto was staring down at the scrolls.

"What about you?" Naruto didn't respond, but he knew that the blond was listening. "Were your parents ninja? Did they die on a mission- or in the Kyuubi-" He was cut off when Naruto made a loud hiss, and it seemed as if pain rippled its way under his skin. His bony hands flew up and covered his face, and there seemed to be a strained out squeal as the blond rocked back and forth on his pillow. Sasuke just sat there in front of Naruto with his legs crossed, picking at a fingernail. It was weird- but, he wasn't upset, and he wasn't mad. He'd just wait this out, like everything else when it came to Naruto, waiting, patience- he was learning a lot of that. He was hoping that Naruto's family had been a clan of some kind- a clan with kekkai genkai that would be useful to them.

"I know nothing of them," Naruto's torn voice came muffled from behind his hands, as he continued to rock. "Maybe they died- maybe they just didn't want me. Most likely that. Nobody wants a monster."

--

The next day he dragged Naruto out of the house, one because he wanted to get some training time in, and two because the Hokage had sent out a man to fix the window, and he knew that Naruto would freak out if anyone was in the house besides the two of them. Naruto seemed even more terrified to go out than the previous times, so much that he kept a firm grip on the blond's forearm all the way to the training grounds, lest he make a run for it.

Everywhere he looked, he saw people cleaning up from the festival; the ground was littered with confetti and balloons, paper cups and plates, bottles and paper lanterns. The villagers had the look of lingering satisfaction on their faces as they swept up the products of their celebration. And Sasuke had the feeling that he was never going to go to that festival again.

They went to the training grounds, and Naruto was back to power-walking instead of the light jog Sasuke had worked him up to. That week of craziness had sapped much out of both of them, and so they walked, and while they walked, Sasuke showed Naruto all the hand seals, and watched in silent satisfaction as Naruto mimicked each seal after he showed him.

He was lucky in that Naruto wasn't a whiner, and didn't complain once it was clear that a situation was out of his control, and so he did what Sasuke told him to do in silence, with darting watchful eyes and open ears.

When they returned to the apartment it was to a fixed window- Naruto was scandalized- and was very quick to newspaper it up. While he did this, Sasuke cleaned the area outside of the apartment, which wasn't littered with confetti, or balloons, but with broken glass from bottles, pieces of brick that hadn't made it through the windows, and some rocks. He cleaned it with lips pressed tight in anger and taut muscles trembling with pent up rage. When he was finished, he stomped back into the apartment and headed into the bedroom, spotting Naruto in the corner, sifting through the jutsu scrolls.

"Why?" He snapped, startling the blond, who dropped the scrolls and immediately hid his face with the hood. Sasuke stalked over to him and pulled the hood back roughly, glaring down at his frightened roommate. "Why were they saying those things about you? What did you do?"

Naruto's terrified eyes darted around the room while he wrung his fingers in distress. "I-I-I-"

"You what? Just tell me! I won't be mad- I swear!"

Naruto looked up at him with watery eyes. "I- I'm a monster," he whispered, and seemed to wait for his condemnation.

Sasuke threw up his hands in frustration. "You've said that before- but it means absolutely nothing to me! What-did you kill someone's babies or something?"

To his complete disbelief, Naruto nodded, staring almost emptily at his legs as he whispered, "Many, many people..."

Sasuke took a step back and bent over at the waist so he could see Naruto's face, which was white and a bit shell-shocked, like he couldn't believe he had admitted this.

"How'd you do that? You don't know any jutsu or-"

"We were above them," Naruto interrupted, and his head darted up and he stared up at Sasuke like he was barely seeing him. "We were above them, and they were ants to us- are ants to us." His weak voice seemed to grow strength, and then Naruto was standing, still staring at him, and Sasuke felt a chill run through him as Naruto continued. "They tried to hurt us, but we crushed them with our paws, and we crunched them with our teeth, and swept them away as dust with our tails. So many of them, so small..." His eyes began to follow something around the room, and Sasuke looked about to see what he was looking at, but there was nothing but the two of them.

Naruto's body gave a spasm and his blue eyes rolled in their sockets; he slumped down onto his pillow and cradled his head in his small thin hands, groaning softly. Sasuke sat back on the bed and stared slack jawed at the boy in the corner. This sounded eerily like the recollection he had heard from a cousin who had been speaking of the Kyuubi attack. Sasuke turned and stared out into the living room, seeing one of the news-papered windows, remembering the drunken, angry words of the villagers. He looked back at his companion.

"Do...do you mean that you're...Kyuubi no Kitsune."

A shudder ran through Naruto's body at the name, and Sasuke swallowed. Was it true? Was he sharing a room with a nine-tailed fox demon? His eyes ran over Naruto's frail form. He didn't seem like a demon...he'd seen more aggression in kittens...

But what if Naruto _was_ more aggressive? What if this was merely some type of ploy- to make people think he was weak? Sasuke scratched his chin, and thought harder. If Naruto was the fox demon, that meant that everyone of the villagers knew about it- even the Hokage. Why would they let him live, having killed so many villagers and ninja? It didn't make sense to let something that powerful and evil wander about the village unharmed. He peered at the object of his thoughts and watched him pull the hood back over his head. Maybe they couldn't kill him...maybe they had no choice but to let him co-exist- better the enemy before you than behind...

There was an infinite amount of possibilities sitting right here in this room with him, frightened of him, willing to do whatever he told him to do. He gazed at glimpses of Naruto's face, and for the first time noticed that the scratches along his cheeks and ears had all but faded, disturbingly fast for a regular person. Sasuke got to his feet and saw Naruto tense in response.

"Well come on. We have to eat lunch."

--

They returned to the Academy the next day, watched under the curious eyes of the students, and the very relieved eyes of Iruka-sensei. They sat in their seats a distance away from all the other students, and kept to themselves. That week they learned the Bunshin no jutsu, and they both succeeded on the first try, though Naruto's wavered and disappeared after a few seconds. When they were alone, he made Naruto practice until he could keep it up for ten minutes, then they would run home for lunch, and return when it was over.

And they had started an uninterrupted routine once again. Naruto cleaned house early in the morning, waking Sasuke up to take his clothes (Sasuke was learning the skill of falling back to sleep immediately while being naked). When he was fully awake, he'd stop Naruto so he could eat, then it was a jog to the Academy. There, they learned the basics of being a ninja, Naruto soaring to top of the class when it came to written exams, but seemed reluctant to do anything when it came to practicals. When it came to sparring, Naruto refused to be partnered up with anyone unless their last name was Uchiha, pissing off many of the other students.

When the day was over they headed for the training grounds, where they both practiced the katon jutsu's that he had. The day ended with dinner for him- but none for Naruto, whom apparently stopped at lunch when it came to eating. Anything beyond that and he was barfing in the toilet. Then it was bed for him and the pillow for Naruto- and the cycle continued- and it was a good one

--

The idea came over him when he had gone out to pick up an order for several kunai he'd had commissioned. Naruto was in the bedroom talking to himself and unwilling to go out, because it was Saturday, and people were less busy, he'd said. When they were less busy, they noticed him, and Naruto didn't like to be noticed. _A good trait for a ninja_, Sasuke thought in satisfaction, and then he had passed the Uchiha compound, and thought faded.

Trees and vine grew over the walls, a clear sign that the compound wasn't being taken care of. He'd been the last one to leave the place, and he couldn't ever imagine returning there. But his feet took him to the gates, and he peered beyond the dried up vines than clung to the metal and stared at the empty houses. Dust had gathered on the porches, leaves had collected in the gutters, and yet, everything was as he had left it- as _they_ had left it. It was so quiet here- he glanced up at the trees and heard no bird-song. It was a damned place, empty with no one but ghosts and memories. No one would probably ever come here again.

A light bulb went off in his head, and Sasuke left the gate and ran all the way back to the apartment. He slammed the door shut behind him and rushed into the room, a grin on his face, though Naruto looked pale and frightened.

"I've got it!" he gasped, and Naruto stared up at him with large eyes. "We should move into my place! It's-"

Naruto was already shaking his head rapidly and vehemently.

"Let me finish! It's safe over there! No one goes there, and it has walls and fences. We could train all we want and you don't have to worry about some villager showing up." Naruto had stopped shaking his head, but his eyes moved about the room nervously, as if he expected it to dissolve around him. "We could move in the middle of the night- everyone would still think you are here- and even if they find that you are gone, they won't know you're at my place."

For once, Naruto was giving him a speculative look, which was kind of creepy.

"It'll be an easy move," Sasuke looked about the room. All they had were clothes, books, and some scrolls. They didn't need to bring any furniture along since his house had everything still in it- like all the other houses- except for bodies. There were none of those. He hesitated. Should he tell Naruto about what had happened to his family? He shook his head and grabbed his blue traveling pack. It was best not to tell Naruto anything- what he didn't know couldn't harm him.

--

He wound up doing most of the moving, being that Naruto was no help carrying things that were heavy, and he was too jumpy to pay complete attention to where they were going, so Sasuke left him behind and moved all of Naruto's books into his old room, which was much larger than Naruto's. The next night he took all of their clothes, and made a return trip to turn off the refrigerator and remove the remainder of the food in the kitchen. And last, he retrieved Naruto, who looked like he was close to having a nervous breakdown now that his room was completely empty except for the bed.

It was three in the morning by the time they reached the gates for the last time, and Sasuke was about to drop from exhaustion, and yet, he was excited. They'd be able to train without Naruto becoming distracted- they'd be able to see what abilities Naruto possessed- if he really was the fox demon.

This was the perfect place.

--

The moment they approached the place, Naruto wanted to run. The air stank of death, misery, and pain- so much pain, and it all seemed to hover in the air like a miasma. He stopped as Sasuke opened the gate and beckoned him in, but he shook his head. Sasuke's hand snapped out and he grabbed him, and he swallowed a scream as he was yanked inside and the gate shut ominously behind him.

YEEEEEEEEESSSSSSSSSSSSS, _They_ breathed, and _Their_ satisfaction ran through him. There were many houses, all sitting along a road that seemed to wind its way through the compound; the place seemed more like a mini village inside of a bigger one.

There was movement in the corner of one of the houses closest to them. Naruto stood there, eyes transfixed as a groping hand dug into the dirt by the house, and pulled itself forward. The hand was connected to a bloody arm, and the arm wriggled and convulsed against the dirt until a head was revealed, a man with dark hair and eyes, mouth agape and full of blood. He gave a gurgle, his black eyes rolling madly in his sockets until they focused on him, and Naruto trembled as the man writhed forward in the dirt. His throat revealed to be sliced open, his entrails dragging beside him and he inched toward Naruto, who wrung his fingers and watched in terror.

"Come on," came Sasuke's voice, and he gasped and jumped as the dark-haired boy gripped his bicep and pulled him along, eyes focused ahead, a look of anticipation in his eyes. "This is where I and my clan used to live. The Great Uchiha Clan." They passed by a child with similar features to Sasuke, holding a woman's head in his hands, sobbing, with a kunai lodged in his brain. Naruto averted his eyes and stepped closely to Sasuke, who acted like he couldn't see them. Why would Sasuke take him here? Why would he do this to him? Was he punishing him for being a monster- was this where he felt he belonged? Tears welled up in his eyes, and he darted away from the man that stood in the middle of the path, a deep gash running from shoulder to hip. His dark eyes followed Naruto as he and Sasuke passed.

Sasuke was frowning at him, glancing around, eyes passing over the man, but apparently by his shrug, not seeing him.

He saw women in windows holding headless babies, and men on porches, hobbling on bloody stumps. They all stopped to look at him.

They stopped in front of a large house, and he saw that Sasuke hesitated a moment before entering. "This is where we're going to live from now on," he muttered, and Naruto saw that he was pale.

They entered the house, and Naruto choked. There was so much hate, and anger here, so much of it, that he imagined it had spread throughout the compound and had consumed everyone in its path. A woman came into view, a pretty woman with soft dark eyes and lovely black hair, and a kunai sitting deep in her breast. She looked at Sasuke, opening her mouth, and it was like a black cavern, endless, and a roaring wail came from her, so loud, that Naruto covered his ears and screamed.

He staggered away, crashing into a wall, feeling hands on him, but he continued to scream, pressing his palms tightly against his ears, his head seeming to split with the pain, hearing nothing but the woman's roar-

And then, silence.

Naruto opened his eyes, and he saw that he was in a different room, a room with posters on the walls and toys littered on the floor. He stared emptily at one, a blue dragon with large eyes and a long, almost comical tongue. It lay on its back, staring at the ceiling. His eyes drifted up, and he saw Sasuke sitting on a larger bed, and looking a bit grey- kind of like on the evening he had met him.

Naruto wiped his eyes with a trembling hand and realized he was sitting in a corner, a dusty corner, a contaminated corner, and he knew that he would be cleaning all morning. This house was big, and it was dirty, filthy. He pulled his legs under him and eyed the door, half expecting the woman to come in. Instead, Sasuke spoke in a quiet, haunted voice.

"I bet you can sense what happened here, huh." He had what looked like a ninja action figure in his hand, and he moved its arms and legs as he spoke. "Everyone knows what happened to the Uchiha's." He put the ninja in a pose, legs spread, hands together in mock jutsu stance. "My brother was the best Uchiha my clan had ever produced- the smartest- fastest, most powerful...He was so cool." Sasuke stared at the ninja, then positioned its head to the left- then the right. "And then he killed everyone." and with his flat words he pulled the ninja's head off and let it slip through his fingers. Naruto watched it bounce to the floor then roll towards him. _They _began to murmur through his head, causing an immediate ache as the head rolled to a stop near his knees, the painted eyes fierce and defiant. Naruto cradled his head in his hands and gave a small whimper.

He was supposed to be safe here- Sasuke said it would be safe, that no one would harm him. But Sasuke lied- Sasuke lies. Everyone lies to him, and he shouldn't have expected anything otherwise

**TBC**

**The jutsu info was taken, I _think, _from narutofan/dot/com... I'm ashamed to say I can't remember.**

**Most of their Academy days will be sort of summarized- I want to really start when they graduate from the Academy.**


	6. Chapter 6

Disclaimer: Naruto does not belong to Kirsdarkenvar

**Ghost and the Darkness**

**Chapter Six**

He was in a dark place, a black void, floating, but not alone. No, he was never alone-couldn't ever recall being alone. _They_ were always with him, as _They_ were now. Eyes appeared in the void, large eyes, the eyes of a giant, red and black, blue and purple, green and yellow, and so many more that they took up the space in the void, filling the darkness.

Naruto curled into a ball, made himself as small as possible, but still _They_ saw him.

"**You are weak**,**"** _They_ boomed, and Naruto flinched, pain lancing up his spine and settling behind his eyes. **"But you have been given an opportunity that we will not let pass us by. We **_**will**_** be powerful again,"** There was a great deal of delighted laughter at this. **"You will not fail us."** It felt as if the eyes were so close that they were touching him. He understood the threat, the price if he failed; eternal torment, eternal misery- forever with _Them._

"**WAKE UP**."

--

Naruto's body jolted, and his eyes flew open. He blinked rapidly as the headache descended upon him, and he sat forward on his pillow and surveyed the room. It was much larger than his own had been, with a bigger bed and a long book case taking up one side of the room. When Sasuke had finally dozed off, Naruto had placed his collection of books in the case, and had been pleased to find that they all fit. And while Sasuke slept curled up under his blankets, he picked up the toys and placed them in the large chest that sat in another corner of the room. He pulled out his bag full of cleaning supplies and wiped down every surface as quietly as he could without waking the dark haired boy, who did not stir once.

Taking a deep breath, Naruto picked up the bag and opened the door, fear rising in him as he peeked out into the dark, cold hallway. He half expected the woman to be there, waiting for him to come out, but the hall was empty and silent, except for the occasional creaks of the house. He swallowed nervously and stepped out, slowly shutting the bedroom door behind him, breaking out in a cold sweat as he slipped down the hallway and entered the large living room. It had much more furniture than he liked to see, fancy furniture, and all of it coated with dust and filth.

Naruto sighed. This would take all morning, and with the headache he had...The blond took another deep breath and got to work, washing the wooden walls, wiping down the couches, scrubbing the carpets, polishing the tables and lamps. When that was finished, an hours' worth of labor, he slipped into another room, which turned out to be a very big kitchen. He moved to the kitchen sink and opened the cabinet beneath it, and was pleased to see an array of cleaning material already available to him, because no doubt he would run out with such a big house. He grabbed a few bottles, straightened up and turned, and gasped in horror as the woman from yesterday stood behind him. The bottles slipped from his arms, crashing to the linoleum as he backed up into the sink.

The woman, who was probably Sasuke's mother, simply stared at him, her dark eyes filled with tears, her face lined with grief. Then she turned and walked out of the kitchen, leaving him shaking in front of the sink, pale and sweaty, heart pounding in his ears. And _They_ laughed.

After ten minutes of shaking, he worked on the kitchen, mopping the floor, cleaning the stove, polishing tables and chairs. When he was finished with that he drank from the faucet, quenching his thirst. Then he moved on to another room connected to the living room, but froze in the doorway when the stench of blood assaulted his nose.

This room also looked like a living room, except it seemed more serious, with a longer table and many chairs, and farther into the room was a very large desk. On the floor before the table was a very large stain, a stain he understood all to well, and standing on the stain was a man, dark of hair and eyes, with lines running along his face putting him somewhere in his forties. He also had a kunai in his chest, but he was also missing an arm. He stared at Naruto dispassionately before speaking in a cold voice.

"Have you come to take our souls, demon?" rusted puffs came with each of his words; Naruto wrung his fingers as he stood in the doorway, shaking his head in reply. The man stared at him a moment, before replying, "You think you can hide in the body of a child? I can see your glowing red eyes," his dark eyes bored into his own, dead, lifeless, but at the same time, angry. "You cannot fool me-"

Naruto backed out of the doorway and shut the door, staring at it before taking a deep breath and turning his back to face the living room. The house _had_ to be clean- but not even _he_ would dare clean that one. He moved on to several other rooms, a few bathrooms and hallways, a stairway, and one very chilling, isolated room filled with ninja apparel and a bed. This room had almost been as bad as that other room, there was a muted anger here; it seemed to fester the very air, and Naruto was left to wonder if all the bads things that happened in this little village had started right here in this room. He moved through that one quickly before leaving. He was relieved to say that Sasuke's mother and father were the only two he had come across.

When he returned to the first floor, it was to see that Sasuke was awake and making breakfast, still looking a bit pale, but also determined. Determined was bad, because it meant that Sasuke was probably going to make him do things he didn't want to do. He rubbed his eyes, which felt swollen by the force of his headache and put the cleaning materials away. It was seven in the morning, and it had taken him four hours to clean the majority of the house- minus the room with the stain and Sasuke's father.

"We leave in an hour," Sasuke reminded him as he placed the bowl of cold soup in front of him. Naruto sighed and picked up the spoon but made no complaint. There was no need to do such a thing- Sasuke would only force him out of the house, and fighting back would only be wasted energy.

After they ate and showered, Sasuke helped him newspaper every window in the house, and there were many of them, and he was doubly grateful for the all the back issues Sasuke's father had kept, because he was doing double layers, being that he didn't want all the massacred Uchiha to look inside, which some of them were doing as he taped down the newspaper. Sasuke made no comment as to why he was shaking so much.

Then they ventured out to the Academy, and he stuck very close to Sasuke while all the Uchiha lifted their heads and watched him go, some eyes full of nothing, others full of despair, horror, pain, or most common, wanting.

What they wanted, he could only imagine.

--

At first he was struck by his own stupidity, at returning to the Uchiha compound. What had he been thinking, coming back to this place, where his whole life had been ruined? He was sure he would crack in the first night alone, back in his own bedroom, back to all the memories. But he had awakened at one point, and seen Naruto putting his books in his book case, and all the fear seemed to ease away. Naruto was part of his new life, in which his old one couldn't touch, and Naruto's indifference to his tragedy was reassuring. He didn't need pity, or for someone to constantly bring it up- or try to heal it for that matter, and he could assure himself that Naruto would do none of these. Naruto would not talk about it at all- not because he was tactful or sensitive, but because talking meant someone would pay attention to him, and Naruto just didn't like to talk- which was fine with Sasuke.

And it turned out, as time passed, that though he was back where he had started, things were still different, and though Naruto was jumpy, and stared at weird things, he also went outside more without Sasuke having to pull him out, or glare threateningly. They trained when they wanted, day or night, without the worry that someone would approach them- except for the Hokage, who was _very_ surprised by their move. But he was also very pleased by Naruto's progress. The blond no longer looked like he was starving, had grown a few inches, and actually managed to look at the Hokage without fear. That didn't mean he talked to him- a conversation with Naruto consisted of yes or no, unless- and this was the only exception- if he was giving a textbook style explanation, and this he didn't do very often because Sasuke had stopped asking him if he knew things. He just assumed Naruto did, and if he didn't- well, Sasuke couldn't tell.

Naruto was a very good training partner. Reluctance and frailty aside, it appeared that Naruto was the type of person that when he did things, he did them right. So though he knew Naruto had no wish to be a ninja, that didn't stop the blond from taking training seriously. He fought Sasuke during taijutsu training, and he was sleek and fast, incredibly evasive and leaning toward the fluid movements of tai chi. His jutsu abilities were at the standard level, and he could perform all of the Katon jutsu Sasuke could, and his kunai tossing was accurate and deadly, now that he had the physical strength to make the kunai stick.

So it wasn't much of a surprise when Naruto quietly mentioned the use of a katana.

--

The man had approached him while he sat under a tree with Sasuke, sweating from their taijutsu training, and feeling the ache in his muscles, and from spots where Sasuke had hit him. The sun was peeking at them through the leaves, and he wished he were inside where it couldn't bug his eyes. He was already feeling very nervous, not because he was outside, but because it was quiet. Everything was quiet; _They_ had not said, or laughed, or roared, in the last hour, and this frightened him. He had been hearing _Them_ all his life, _They_ had made _Their_ presence known to him the moment he could understand the concept of thought-or an inner voice. _They_ had always been there- and yet, _They_ were silent.

He could only conclude that _They_ planned something horrible for him- in the same way _They_ forced Sasuke upon him, so when the man with a large chunk of his skull missing staggered toward them, he was not surprised. Sasuke was oblivious, as usual, staring out at some of the houses, unaware that the man was there.

He wore a chuunin's vest, and his hitai-ate hung comfortably around his neck, seeming completely normal despite the exposed brain. Dangling in one hand, was a katana, worn from use and looking quite comfortable. He stopped several feet from them, and Naruto looked up at him, ready to leap out of the way if the man attacked- which he no doubt would, being that he was a villager, and they always wanted to see him suffer.

"You're a small one, eh?" the man commented congenially, puffs of rust escaping his mouth. Naruto swallowed and glanced at Sasuke, who started to sharpen a kunai, looking relaxed and content. He looked back at the man, who smiled happily- which was alarming, because none of the other Uchiha's had _ever_ smiled. He couldn't imagine why they would have a _reason_ to. "I saw you and Fugaku's boy sparring, and you look to me like the kind of boy who should be getting a sword." He leaned forward and peered down at him, and Naruto leaned back. "You're not very strong physically, but you got precision, and you got speed. Go get yourself a sword and I'll show you some moves- since I ain't done shit for six 'effin months."

He waited for Naruto to reply, and just when he decided not to say anything, _They_ stirred, and he knew he would have to do what _They_ wanted. Naruto nodded rapidly, and the man smiled.

"Good. I'm Nabeshin. I'll see you sometime..." And strangely enough, his gaze hollowed out, and he seemed to lose interest and simply drifted away. Naruto wiped his brow and glanced again at Sasuke, who was inspecting the kunai he was sharpening.

"Sasuke?" he whispered, and the other lifted his head and turned questioning dark eyes upon him. Naruto averted his eyes, instead staring at Sasuke shoulder. "I...I would like to train with a sword." A look of keen interest flashed through Sasuke's eyes, and he turned and gazed toward the houses.

"That's interesting," he commented, and got to his feet. Naruto stood up and quickly followed him as he made his way through a winding path between houses, pausing at intervals with a slight frown, before turning down one corner, until he approached a square house with the distinct scent of metal. Sasuke hesitated at the door before stepping in.

The house was actually an armory, the walls lined with spears, cudgels, katana, nodachi's, poles, kunai, shuriken, and axes. Sasuke stepped up to one of the walls and pulled down a short bladed katana, about the length of his arm, give or take a few inches. He handed it to Naruto, and as he gripped the worn gray handle, noticed that it wasn't as heavy as he had thought. He carefully swung the blade, watching how the blade arced through the air, and saw out of the corner of his eye Sasuke picking up another, almost identical katana.

"We can train together," Sasuke said, swinging the blade with more force and carelessness than Naruto dared. "What made you want to learn the art of the sword?"

Naruto shrugged and smoothed down his hood. His eyes found a dark smear on the wall, and he quickly gazed about, searching for the black smith, hoping that he wasn't still in the room. Together they exited the armory, Sasuke admiring the katana and the sheaths they had confiscated.

--

He noticed, as things seemed to go, that the Uchiha were most active during nightfall, which was no big surprise as scary stories went, and even though he was terrified to go out, _They_ gave him such a headache that he was all but forced to seek out Nabeshin. He was putting ninja stealth to use, and he hid behind trees, or water heaters, benches, and behind forgotten laundry on hangers to avoid the bloody, wandering Uchiha. He often found Nabeshin wandering around a building, looking agitated, and he looked upset every time Naruto approached him, and he could only reason that something about the house upset Nabeshin greatly, and he couldn't understand why Nabeshin would return there every night if the place upset him so.

But Nabeshin was an excellent teacher, very patient, and though his head leaked and his brain sat exposed to the elements, he showed Naruto the proper way to hold the katana, to sheath it, and how to stand. He never touched him, and Naruto never made an attempt to make physical contact- the very thought made his skin crawl- mostly because he didn't like when people touched him, and barely tolerated it from Sasuke. After a few hours of lessons, Naruto would return to the house to clean, and run from Sasuke's mother, who sometimes roared throughout the house, and he had awakened Sasuke several times with his screaming. Sasuke dealt with this in his usual way, which was to drag him back to the room and stand around and wait until he could produce coherent thoughts again; he never asked him what the matter was.

After a day spent at the Academy, Naruto would show Sasuke what he learned from Nabeshin, and though Sasuke was mystified as to where he had learned the techniques, the dark haired boy simply believed that as the Nine Tailed fox Demon, he would know these things. Actually the idea that he may know things that Sasuke didn't seemed to intrigue the Uchiha greatly, and he often asked what else did he know. These questions often excited _Them_ too much, enough to pain him and send him to his corner, and often when things got that bad, Sasuke would leave him alone, and eventually he stopped asking.

But Nabeshin's lessons were proficient-Sasuke had a natural talent for the blade, and both of them trained until the blade felt like a mere extension of their arms. They knew each others moves, and they fought each other into a standstill- or until Naruto got tired and gave up, which frustrated Sasuke to no end. Sasuke didn't like it when Naruto surrendered, and often yelled at him for this 'weakness.' Naruto didn't much care, as long as Sasuke didn't strike him for it- which thankfully he never did outside of training.

But Naruto always expected him to. Always.

--

Haruno Sakura was very excited today. Today, all her years at the Ninja Academy would pay off, and she would be taking a final exam and move on to be a genin. This was a moment, in a series a moments, that she had been waiting for, and she just knew that after she passed the exam, she would be teamed up with the coolest, handsomest, strongest, ninja of their class. The top rookie Academy student, Uchiha Sasuke.

She blushed in the mirror and drew her brush through her hair for the hundredth time until it absolutely gleamed. She had tried to imagine what being on a team with him would be like, how much potential she could bring, how many missions they would complete, how much he would see that she was the coolest kunoichi around. She stepped out of her house and headed down toward the Academy.

She knew that she would be on the same team as he, but she couldn't figure out who that third member would be. But she knew one thing, one thing that made her not worry- it wouldn't be Uzumaki Naruto. Her teeth clenched at the though of his name. She absolutely hated Naruto, and she wasn't the only girl that felt the same. Naruto was the reason that none of the girls could get close to Sasuke, because apparently Naruto didn't like anyone within ten feet of him, in all angles, and since he was _always_ with Sasuke, no one ever got close to the gorgeous Uchiha. As a matter of fact, ever since Naruto had shown up, Sakura could only recall one time when Sasuke wasn't with him- if one was absent- both were. The girls liked to think of Naruto as a leech, clinging on to Sasuke, always taking up his time and attention, so that no one could ever speak to him. Some of the boys had made crude comments before that Naruto was Sasuke's little girlfriend- but that joke had faded when Sasuke beat the boy up in the bathroom pretty badly. She'd heard Kiba say that Naruto had just stood by and watched.

She could imagine it, and shuddered at the thought of Naruto's eyes. She hated those red-rimmed, shadowed eyes; when they fell on her, they always seemed to be accusing her of something- Naruto always made her feel like she had committed a crime, and she couldn't stand it. What had she ever done to him? And sometimes, when she got too close, and Naruto would move closer to Sasuke, the dark- haired boy would give her such a look, like she was the bane of his existence, and how dare she make Naruto uncomfortable!

How she hated Uzumaki.

And then, of course, he'd _had_ to take her spot academically. So not only was he taking up Sasuke's time, he also had to be a genius as well. She'd seen his work, his neat penmanship and his superior textbook-like answers. She'd seen Shikamaru send him fascinated looks, no doubt intrigued by the hooded blond, who never spoke, even when addressed by Iruka-sensei and Mizuki -sensei. This, was often a comical event in class, because although Iruka-sensei had long ago stopped asking Naruto questions, Mizuki-sensei seemed intent on getting answers from Naruto. And no matter how vehemently he asked, or slapped his hands down on Naruto's desk, the hooded blond would remain immobile, forever staring at his desktop. One time, Mizuki-sensei had gotten so fed up with Naruto's insolence, that he had reached out to grab the blonds face, but Sasuke had jumped up and grabbed his wrist, and had given him a nasty glare. The tension had only been defused when Iruka-sensei returned to the classroom to see the standoff. Needless to say, Naruto _still_ never spoke to him, and they all had talked of it for many days.

She supposed what bugged her the most was that not only was he good academically, but when it came to taijutsu and ninjutsu, Naruto was _good_. She and many others had often stopped to watch Sasuke and Naruto spar, and it was marvelous. Sasuke moved with power, a punch or a kick filled with force, precision and grace. He was always an offense fighter, while Naruto was the opposite fluid and light, quick on his feet, and often redirecting the force of Sasuke's punches and kicks. They mirrored each other in a way that said they fought often, so that they never really scored each other, since they apparently knew each other so well. This, of course bugged her.

What was the likelihood that they would both end up on the same team? She didn't think she could compete with Naruto, but she wouldn't worry- they never place two genius's on the same team.

As she stepped into the Academy, she immediately spied both boys, standing in a corner, both heads bowed close together, as of they were speaking. She couldn't see Naruto's face, because his blond bangs and hood covered most of his face, but she could see some of Sasuke's face, and he looked downright unhappy. As if sensing her gaze, he looked up, and she shrank away from the rage in his eyes. Sasuke looked pissed. Naruto did not look up, which wasn't uncommon, but he did put a hand over his eyes and squeezed his temples with his index and thumb. It was something she had seen her mother do when she had a headache. Yesterday everyone had been talking about the shocking scene that had taken place outside, and she shot covert glances at the hooded blond. What had Sasuke done to him? For a second she paused on the thought- why would she think Sasuke had done _anything_ to him? She _had_ heard the terrible screaming...

But why was Sasuke so mad?

--

He had been living in a world comprising solely of him and Naruto- Sasuke would admit this, that they seemed like the only living things in a world of ghosts. He hadn't been paying too much attention to what was going on around them, that time was passing by- birthdays had come and gone without notice. The world outside the Uchiha compound had become a blur, almost intangible except for days at the Academy, or when he needed to stock up on supplies. There was him, there was Naruto, there was training, and cleaning, and keeping Naruto from killing himself all week during the Fall Festival. There were newspaper windows, all-nighters, and patching up cuts and bruises. There were katana to sharpen and chakra to mold. There was forcing Naruto to eat, and waking up to have his pajama's taken, and perfecting jutsu. There was complete silence, and the lack of conversation.

There was his world, consisting of him, and Naruto.

And then Iruka-sensei had announced the genin exam, and it was as if he had awakened from a perfectly acceptable dream, the kind where you wake pissed because it was way better than the waking world. In his mind, those were the worst dreams, and Iruka-sensei had crushed it like a cockroach.

Though the idea of moving up in his ninja career should be a happy thought, it was clouded over by the realization that they would be moved into teams, and there was no guarantee that Naruto would be placed with him. And by the gray cast of Naruto's skin, the blond had arrived to the same conclusion, probably before him.

There had been the sound of all the other students, and they chattered in excitement over Iruka-sensei's calls about reviewing material, and it was as if he was seeing and hearing them for the first time. He had lifted his head and surveyed them, seen kids he used to talk to bouncing in their seats, bragging about their potential. All the girls were crowded together, squealing at one another, and a few glanced at him in excitement.

Sasuke had turned back to stare down at his desk, and realized that he mirrored Naruto, who had not once looked up. Naruto was instead staring down at the desk in horror, face going from gray to a nasty shade of yellow, very alarming, and Sasuke had quickly asked to be excused. Iruka-sensei had been about to ask why, but he had caught a glimpse of Naruto's face and had allowed them to leave.

Naruto threw up breakfast in bathroom, and then proceeded to hug the toilet, shaking and staring into the bowl.

"I won't go out there," he rasped, and when he looked up at him, Sasuke had seen his eyes look completely wild. He knew that look- it was the same look he got during the Fall Festival, crazed and unfocused, his eyes jittering in their sockets. He felt dread course through him.

"Not out here!" he had hissed, and tried to pull Naruto away from the toilet, but the blond clung to it like his life depended on it.

"I won't go on team alone! They can't make me!" Naruto started to shriek, and Sasuke was alarmed to see that his nose began to gush blood. Naruto released the toilet and dug his hands into his scalp. "You can't make me!" He started to scream. _"You can't make me!_"

Sasuke felt a presence behind him and spun to see Shikamaru standing in the doorway, brown eyes staring in alarm at the crouching blond, who was now pulling out chunks of his hair.

"I won't go, I won't go!" Naruto was wailing, and Sasuke quickly wrapped both arms around the blond and dragged him out the stall while he continued to shriek. He dragged him out of the bathroom, aware that Shikamaru was still following him, and he took a second to pause and glance back at the worried boy.

"He's just having a moment," he called over Naruto's screams, feeling flecks of blood splatter his face, and he quickly continued to drag Naruto away from the Academy just as he noticed several students and chunnin appear at the doors and windows.

"Should I get a sensei?" Shikamaru offered, still following, wincing as he saw Naruto's nails run over his whiskered face, immediately drawing more blood, that wasn't already pouring out of his nose, mouth, and scalp.

"Nono," Sasuke huffed as he struggled not to fall over as Naruto writhed in his arms, his legs almost tangling with his own. "Just leave us- you're making him crazy."

Shikamaru stopped and stayed back as he struggled on, stopping only once to keep Naruto's hood over his head as the villagers stopped to stare in shock as they passed. Naruto's blood was now running all over Sasuke's face, and soaking into the neck of his shirt, and he was surprised Naruto hadn't started clawing at _his_ face.

"_I won't go! They can't make me!_" Naruto continued to scream. _"They can't make me!"_

The progress had been slow and taxing, and Naruto's screams were starting to attract even more attention. Pursing his lips, Sasuke had dragged Naruto into an alley and quickly slammed the blond's head into the wall, cutting his screams short with a choking sound, and the blond went limp. Sasuke had then carried the bloody blond all they back to the compound, leaving him in a very guilty, very foul mood.

A very foul mood.

**TBC**

**If it was too complicated to understand, Naruto's reluctance of being separated from Sasuke and placed in a team has made _Them_, very angry, causing the nosebleed and such. So I've mostly skipped over their Academy days and have gone straight to the gennin exams- which will be the next chapter. Sasuke does not know about the ghosts.**


	7. Chapter 7

Disclaimer: Naruto does not belong to Kirsdarkenvar

_**I know many have read the whole survival test many times over, but please bear with me here. It won't be so bad**_

**Chapter Seven**

Sasuke sat down at his seat as the class was called to order and sent a sideways glare at his hooded companion, who seated himself quietly and was still holding his head in pain. Getting Naruto to come for the genin exam had been like pulling teeth; they had gone back to dragging and holding onto doorways. And then Naruto had suddenly jumped up and rushed out of the house like the Devil had been at his heels, leaving Sasuke puzzled and agitated. And it didn't help that Sakura kept staring at him and Naruto at intervals, with a stupid doe eyed look.

He really hadn't thought that they could be separated into different teams- he'd been so into training that nothing else seemed to exist. By the way Naruto had been going on, it was unlikely that he would come back to the Academy if he was separated from Sasuke, and he didn't think any amount of verbal abuse would get him to go.

"Alright," Iruka-sensei called above the excited murmur, "when I call your names, come up front and perform the task given to you." He then sat down next to Mizuki-sensei, and the exam began. It was easy enough- all they had to do was create a henge bunshin, which was so easy it was actually ridiculous.

One by one they went through the students until his name was called, and he moved from his desk and stepped forward to perform the useless task, glancing back once to make sure Naruto wasn't having a nervous breakdown because Sasuke had left him. No, Naruto was still staring down at the desk, though it seemed that his headache was worse, judging by the fine tremble in his fingers that still cradled his head. Sasuke felt bad about that; he hadn't wanted to bash Naruto's head to knock him out, but the blond had been too crazy for him to handle all the way home without one of the many ninja on duty noticing.

Sasuke performed the the henge and bunshin, and calmly returned to his seat just as Naruto's name was called. He sat down and turned to look at his companion. Naruto's eyes were turning red and glassy, as if he had been crying for hours, and he was shaking even more- it hit Sasuke that Naruto wasn't going to go up. He was going to fail the exam by not responding.

"Uzumaki Naruto?" Iruka-sensei called, and looked up to see both boys in their seats.

"Get up there," Sasuke hissed as quietly as he could between clenched teeth, but Naruto's lips thinned and the boy shook his head minutely. Sasuke gripped his arm tightly, putting enough pressure for it to hurt, and growled, "If you don't go up there, I'll kill you later."

The blood drained from the blond's face and he looked up at him, red eyes wide, then slowly got up from the desk and quickly moved to the front. In the back of the class, Inuzuka Kiba watched as Uzumaki performed the jutsu perfectly, then turned to stare down at Uchiha. An Inuzuka had excellent hearing- better than most, and he watched as Naruto returned to his seat next to Sasuke, his shoulders even more hunched than they already were, and felt pretty sorry for the kid. He couldn't for the life of him understand why Naruto hung around such a self-righteous bastard. Half the time he was relieved that he could manage staying in the same room as the Uchiha- it was no surprise that the bastard was such a jerk to Uzumaki.

Every one was let go early to celebrate their graduation with family and friends, but Sasuke rushed them home, angry and barely in control of his temper.

"What were you thinking?! All those years of training, and you were just going to throw it away? And for what?- because you're _scared_?" Naruto kept his head down, not replying. "Yeah well, I guess that's no big surprise," Sasuke snapped as they passed through the compound gates. "you're middle name is probably scared, or frightened, or most likely _pathetic_!" Sasuke stomped into the house then spun and pointed a finger at Naruto, who jumped back. "Well I don't care how scared you are, you're going to show up tomorrow for Team placement, and the day after and so on- or so help me-" he raised his hand, perhaps to hit him, but Naruto's face was beginning to crumble, and the rage drained from his body. He took a deep breath and went back outside for fresh air.

Naruto did not follow.

--

The next day did not start well- Naruto refused to eat breakfast, instead choosing to stare at nothing with a glassy eyed disposition, and Sasuke was only grateful that Naruto didn't put up a fuss when they left for the Academy.

When they arrived, it was to the increased excitement of the passing Academy students, and quite oddly, the occasional glare from Inuzuka Kiba- which was strange- because he couldn't remember saying two words to the dog-boy...as a matter of fact, he couldn't remember saying two words to anyone other than Naruto in a long time.

When everyone settled, Iruka-sensei pulled out a list and cleared his throat. "I'm going to first call out a Team number, then three genin who will be in that Team. Don't bother asking me to change the Team later- it's not happening. Alright, for Team 5-"

The names and Teams were called out, Inuzuka Kiba, Hyuuga Hinata, and Aburame Shino, were put together as Team Eight, Yamanaka Ino, Nara Shikamaru, and Akimichi Chouji were Team Ten. Ino looked downright enraged when this was announced, but the highlight of the event was that Haruno Sakura was put on Team Four, with two boys he wasn't familiar with. The girl looked absolutely crushed.

"For Team Seven, Uchiha Sasuke, Uzumaki Naruto, and Yoshina Kaori," Sasuke gave an audible sigh of relief, and glanced at Naruto, whose lip was bleeding- but the blond was clearly relieved. All that drama for nothing!

Then he frowned. Who was Yoshina Kaori?

--

Hatake Kakashi stepped into the Uchiha main house and crinkled his nose at the strong cleanser scent that assaulted him and promised a maniacal headache. The Hokage moved to the living room and sat down with a sigh, eyes moving around the room. To Kakashi, it didn't seem like the residence of two, practically unsupervised children- but more like the house of an obsessive neat freak. He wandered through the rooms, stopping in what appeared to the boys' room, though there was only one bed- perfectly made. He paused in the middle of the room and stared down at the pillow that sat in the corner.

"That's where Naruto resides," The Sandaime's voice came, and he glanced back at the older man. "He doesn't sleep very often, so he apparently has no use for a bed."

"Hmm..." was Kakashi's most intelligent reply. He'd read up on both boys, what Umino Iruka had written, the Hokage himself had written. It seems Uchiha Sasuke was the best thing to happen to Naruto, who was apparently a borderline schizophrenic, a condition that gave him pause as his eye fell on the newspapered windows. Before Sasuke, Naruto barely ate, slept, or left his apartment unless it was to get cleaning supplies. Sasuke had not only gotten him to eat, but to venture out and join the Academy- well truthfully, as the Hokage admitted, Naruto had been forced to go. But he _was_ a bit healthier, and was at the top of his class, and was around people.

Iruka's report said something different though. Sasuke had completely shut down once he and Naruto returned to the Academy, both were extremely antisocial, seeming, and this was what Umino-san had written 'as if they had retreated into their own little world'.

Kakashi was left feeling like he wasn't sure he could deal with both boys.

"Putting them on a Team will remind them of the world- and others," Sandaime assured, and he only sighed and shook his head.

"I'll try my best." And his best was all he could give.

--

Yoshina Kaori was one of those goth girls, who wore too much eye liner and black lipstick, and was apparently fond of fishnet anything. Her hair was cut in short spikes, and she looked at both boys with bland brown eyes and a few bruises on her face. She wasn't very popular with the other to be kunoichi, and she sat a seat away from Naruto as they waited for their _very_ late sensei. All the other children, and even the sensei's had departed, leaving the three of them alone in the classroom.

Sasuke leaned back in his seat and stared at the ceiling. He wasn't sure how much trouble Kaori would be, if she would hold them back, or inadvertently push Naruto back into his shell, but he was grateful that in the three hours in which they waited for their sensei, she had said nothing. This was good- if it had been Sakura, he would have likely been telling her to shut up. But Kaori only picked at her cuticles and looked at them from the corner of her eyes- and he noticed Naruto was doing the same thing to her, clearly unhappy with her presence so close to him- even if there was a full empty seat between the two.

The door slid open, and a silver haired jounin entered, one eye covered with his hitai-ate and the other open and disinterested. The rest of his face was covered from nose to neck in black cloth, and he wore standard ninja attire. "You Team Seven?" he asked in a lackadaisical manner.

"Yes," Kaori mumbled, she had a rather pleasantly rough voice, and Sasuke thought it very bizarre that he had noticed this.

"Meet me on the roof," the jounin replied, then poofed away. Sasuke sighed and pushed himself to his feet, heading for the door with Naruto at his heels. When the three arrived, the jounin was sitting comfortably on a lounge chair, an orange book in his hand. They sat across from him on the ledge of the building and waited until the man put the book away and looked at them.

"So...I'm Hatake Kakashi- you can call me Kakashi-sensei. Let's start by you telling me what you're likes and dislikes are, hopes, dreams, etcetera etcetera..." He pointed to Kaori first.

"Um...I'm Yoshina Kaori. Hi," she introduced, giving Naruto and Sasuke a small half hearted wave. "I like writing and photography. I don't like to shout or argue." She blinked at Kakashi-sensei, who smiled cheerfully behind his mask., then pointed as Sasuke.

"I'm Uchiha Sasuke. I like very few things, I dislike many things, I have no hopes or dreams...but I have a certain ambition-" His dark eyes seemed to smolder. "To kill a certain man."

"I see," Kakashi muttered. He looked at Uzumaki, who didn't seemed to care or notice Sasuke's words, for he was too busy staring at Kakashi's legs, and he resisted the urge to glance down at himself to see what the kid was staring at- but mostly because it wasn't an interested stare that the boy was giving, but an empty one, the kind devoid of thought, when your eyes just needed to rest on something. "And what of you?" he asked the blond, but Uzumaki remained staring at his legs until Sasuke nudged his leg with his own, and the blond looked up at his face with darting blue eyes. Still he said nothing.

"Naruto likes to read," Sasuke supplied for him with a shrug, and they lapsed into a momentary silence.

"Okay," Kakashi stood up. "Tomorrow at seven, will be _my_ test to truly see if you are worthy of the genin title. Come- bring what you will, but don't eat breakfast, you're likely to throw it up." He gave a lazy wave before poofing away.

Sasuke turned to Naruto. "Let's go, we got some training to do." Naruto nodded, and both boys headed for the door.

"Um...see you guys tomorrow," Kaori called faintly, and Sasuke glanced back and gave a small nod before they returned to the compound.

--

When Kakashi showed up to the Academy, he was surprised to see only Yoshina standing out in the field, picking at her cuticles and looking out of place.

"Where are Naruto and Sasuke?" he asked, and the girl frowned up at him.

"You're all late. I thought we were supposed to show up at seven," she muttered, then turned as Sasuke and Naruto approached, the dark haired boy looking peeved while the blond simply looked miserable. Kakashi immediately noticed the katana strapped to their backs, and was curious to see that while Sasuke's was the usual hilt upward at his shoulder, Naruto's katana was hilt downward, at his hip and the tip at his shoulder. Interesting. Umino's reports spoke nothing of weapons beyond the shuriken and kunai, and he wondered if both boys could actually use the blades.

They followed him out to Training Area Five, which was a wooden area, and stood around him as he produced a clock and set it down beside a tree.

"The object of this test is for you to capture these bells before that clock timer strikes twelve," he shook the two small bells hanging from his hip. "There are only two bells, as you can see, so that means one of you will be sent back to the Academy." Sasuke's eyes narrowed, Kaori swallowed nervously, and Naruto looked glassy eyed and indifferent, as if he didn't care about the outcome. "And just to let you know, this has a sixty-six percent failure expectancy, so, I imagine you all will be failing. Feel free to attack me at any time with the intent to kill, because anything less will get you back at the Academy." He pulled out his book. "You may start...now."

The timer pinged, and he watched as all three children disappeared into the surrounding trees. He could sense both boys nearby, and Kaori farther back. For thirty minutes both boys moved through the trees, apparently unsure of when- or how to attack, and most likely wondering when he would do so. Then there was a rustle, and out leaped Sasuke, blade unsheathed and going straight for his head. Kakashi parried and pulled out his kunai, letting it clash with a ring against the blade, sparks flying as the steel glided against each other. There was a presence behind him and he leaped into the air, looking down to see Naruto's blade cut across where his legs had been.

These boys could use those katana!

He kicked Sasuke from him as he landed and punched Naruto in the chest, knocking both boys away. Sasuke landed lightly on his feet, crouching low with his katana pointed away from him, but Naruto staggered back, giving a wheeze and rubbing his chest. A whiff of sulfur came to him, and Kakashi looked down to see an exploding tag attached to his behind. He kawamari'd away just as the tag exploded, showering splinters of wood everywhere and forcing the boys to cover their faces. Up in the trees, he created a Kage bunshin and sent it after Kaori, who was hovering nervously in the trees, looking for a way into the fight.

His bunshin hopped down from the tree and approached her; the girl pulled out a kunai and threw it at him. The bunshin slapped it away and leaped forward, throwing a punch, which the girl dodged, then blocking her kick. The girl put up a decent fight before she was knocked into a tree, giving out a cry before losing consciousness.

Sasuke and Naruto, who had been in the small clearing, conferring with one another silently, looked up at the sound of her cry, then looked at each other. Sasuke's lips thinned and he pointed two fingers into the brush, and Kakashi watched as Naruto flitted away in that direction, surprisingly quick and quiet. These two were _very_ interesting! Sasuke hadn't told Naruto to run toward Kaori's cry, but to go around it, lest he fall into traps.

Taking this opportunity, Kakashi dropped from the canopy before Sasuke, and the boy immediately sheathed the blade, instead attacking him with taijutsu. He put his book away so he could engage the Uchiha properly and take stock of his skills; Sasuke had decent taijutsu training, a little better than average, and he was surprised when the boy shouted, "Katon: Gokakyu no Jutsu!" The Uchiha blew a billow of fire towards him, causing him to smile as he drew his hands together.

"Doton: Shinjuu Zanshuu no Jutsu." He sank into the ground, moved under where Sasuke had landed, and pulled the boy into the earth until only his head remained above the earth. He emerged from the ground and studied the Uchiha, who looked both surprised and disgruntled before he poofed away into the trees and awaited Naruto's return, watching as Sasuke struggled to pull himself from the dirt but not able to move.

Quite suddenly Naruto appeared from the copse of trees surrounding them, leaping over the brush and taking a few light steps into the clearing, katana in his right hand, before the blond froze, his hood far back enough on his head to show his features properly. The boys' face was thin, with high cheek bones and no baby fat, with three whisker marks on each side of his almost hollow cheeks. His eyes were puffy and red rimmed, with dark shadows underneath, and his face seemed frozen as he stared at the almost submerged Uchiha. Sasuke grunted, blushing, before asking gruffly, "Did you find Kaori?"

Naruto opened his mouth, closed it, then asked in a cracked unused voice, "Are you dead?"

Both Kakashi and Sasuke frowned.

"Would I be talking to you if I was dead?!" Sasuke snapped incredulously, and tried to struggle. "I'm stuck. He used some kind of earth jutsu on me. Help me out." Naruto stood where he was for a moment, staring at the Uchiha before moving forward and crouching by his side. He dug his fingers into the earth and made a short, half hearted attempt to dig Sasuke out before he gave up.

"I don't know any Doton jutsu Sa-" Kakashi chose to make his move then, appearing behind the blond. As if sensing him, Naruto unsheathed his blade, swinging it around and miraculously missing Sasuke's head, but Kakashi grabbed his wrist, fingers digging into the bone as he simultaneously grabbed Naruto's other arm and held it behind his back. The blond's hand spasmed and released the katana at the same time the timer gave a ping of finality.

All three said nothing, frozen in that state, until Naruto's head moved, and Kakashi noticed that the hood had fallen back and he could see all of Naruto's hair, which was a pale yellow, and strangely enough, layered in different lengths. A blue eye peered back up at him from under uneven bangs, and he realized he still had the blond within his grip. He blinked down at the boy, staring into that one blue eye, and realized that Naruto was waiting for him to inflict pain- there was this level of expectancy about that gaze.

He released the boy with a sigh, and watched as the blond cradled his wrist, on his knees next to Sasuke's head. Both boys said nothing.

--

Kaori sighed, stomach aching with hunger but knowing she would get nothing as she was tied to a wooden pole, and Kakashi-sensei had said she wasn't allowed to eat. No wonder he had asked them not to eat- how sinister! But she was grateful, because he had said he was going to give them a second chance before he had disappeared off. She glanced sideways at Uchiha Sasuke, who looked to be mulling over the entire battle, though she hadn't seen much of it at all. She'd never been particularly good at fighting, which was why she had joined the Ninja Academy in the first place- to better herself.

Something touched her leg, and she turned to see that Naruto was offering her his lunch, his hood hiding more than half of his face.

"That's okay, I can handle it. I'm not that hungry."

Naruto's hand didn't move, and she jumped as the ropes tying her to the pole loosened, and she turned to see Sasuke put his kunai away.

"You might as well eat it, he sure won't."

She carefully took the lunch from the blond with a blush. "But Kakashi-sensei said that you guys weren't allowed to share with me," she nervously but hungrily dug into the meal as Naruto buried his hands into his sweater pockets, but not before she noticed the angry bruising around his right wrist. Without thinking, she reached out and grabbed Naruto's arm. "That looks bad," she said just as Naruto jerked his hand back from her and stuffed it back into his pocket, his face stiffening with disgust. "Sorry..." she muttered in embarrassment just as a gust of sand blew toward them, and they froze as Kakashi-sensei appeared before them.

He looked pissed.

"YOU," he bellowed, and Sasuke and Kaori blanched at his expression. Naruto just stared down at his own knees. "Pass!" His face went from anger to cheerful mellowness.

Kaori swallowed. "I think I peed myself."

Sasuke sent her an amused look before looking back up at Kakashi-sensei. "How did we pass? We haven't done anything yet."

Kakashi smiled at him. "Ninja who don't follow the rules are trash," his smile faded as he looked them in the eye, minus Naruto, who was still staring at his knees, "But ninja who don't take care of their team mates are worse than trash." He beamed again. "So I'll see you all tomorrow at the bridge," he turned away with a wave. "I've got to go register you all. We'll start missions tomorrow."

Sasuke got to his feet and dusted himself off- Naruto was already standing, and seemed anxious to leave.

"Thanks for the food, Naruto. It was real nice of you-"

"No need to thank him," Sasuke cut in. "He _really_ wasn't going to eat that." He glanced at the box container of food then nodded at Naruto. "Come on, we got training to do."

"Um, maybe we could train together," Kaori suggested, but the boys were either too far away to hear her, or had simply ignored her, which wouldn't have been much of a surprise- most people did.

--

Their first mission was cleaning someone's yard, which was full of leaves and weeds, and though they clearly had no desire to do something so menial, they shut their mouths and grit their teeth, and did the mission. Except for Naruto, who took to cleaning the yard with a fervor that startled Kaori and made Sasuke roll his eyes. The way Naruto went at those leaves, it was as if he'd been raking them for years, and he went at it with a single-mindedness that bordered on villainy. He was truly in his element.

Most of the D-rank missions consisted of labor, picking up groceries for an old woman, delivering merchandise to a house, painting a fence, (Naruto was real good at this), and other dull chore-like duties. Every other day, Kakashi-sensei would take them out to Training Area Four and train with them. He was teaching her better taijutsu and some strength training, and what she learned she used against Sasuke and Naruto. Sasuke always kicked her butt, but Naruto was completely frustrating because it was clear it was all he had to stay within two feet of her. They managed some pretty lousy sparring, with Naruto mostly evading her every move. The only time she actually saw him in action was when he fought Sasuke, because he was also leery of Kakashi-sensei. He didn't seem to want to go anywhere near the man unless Sasuke took him aside and said- what she imagined- were some very unfriendly words, judging by the pallor of his skin by the time he approached Kakashi-sensei.

But she was getting better, and Sasuke wasn't as mean as she thought he was, and Naruto, she imagined was simply shy. Very shy. Extremely shy. Okay, maybe ridiculously shy, but there was still something about him...

--

"How's that team of yours?" Sarutobi Asuma asked as they sat down for the evening, sake pouring into their cups. Yuuhi Kurenai sighed and took a sip of her wine and rubbed the back of her neck.

"They've got promise. Kiba's a rash one, and quick to action, but he's got strength and potential. I've no doubts about the Aburame's- Shino will do quite well. It's little Hinata that worries me."

"What's the matter with the Hyuuga child?" Maito Gai asked, pouring more sake into his cup with a shiny grin. Kurenai rolled her eyes and groaned.

"Don't get me started on the Hyuuga's. I shouldn't have to say much- you have one."

Gai grinned in reply.

"How's yours Asuma?"

Asuma took a swig of his cigarette and gave a lazy smiled. "They're as expected- you know," he waved his cigarette hand, "the whole, Yamanaka-Nara-Akimichi team. I think it'll work just as well as the previous one." He turned to the very quiet Copy-Cat ninja. "And what of you Kakashi? How's you're Team?"

Kakashi, who had been staring at the table top, frowned without looking up. "Quiet."

"Huh?" was Gai's confused reply.

Kakashi looked up from the table into their interested faces. "I must have the quietest Team in Konoha history. They don't converse with one another, they don't fight or argue, they just train and do the missions."

"Wow," Kurenai couldn't imagine that kind of silence, not with Kiba's big, boisterous mouth. And Asuma had more than a mouth with Ino in his Team.

"And Sasuke and Naruto keep showing up late, everyday."

"And that's apparently saying a lot, since _you're_ never on time," Asuma commented.

Kakashi sighed. "I can't believe I'm going to say this, but..." and here he almost flinched. "My Team is lacking that...burning flame of youth."

"OF COURSE!" Gai all but shouted, and the other two ninja sent dark glares Kakashi's way, "YOU MUST GUIDE THEM TOWARDS THE FLAME! FOR THEY ARE THE NINJA OF TOMORROW. THEY ARE-" The three groaned as Gai went on into his inspirational speech and downed their drinks quickly, and refilling their cups just as fast.

--

Kakashi watched as both boys approached the section of the bridge in which both he and Kaori waited, he had been reading while she had been snapping shots of the water below with an expensive camera. Today there was no mission for the Team, and he had an intent to find out why the boys were actually later than he was- it was just unnatural.

"Sasuke," he gestured for the boy to come forward, and he moved away from the others. Sasuke shoved his hands into his short pockets and waited for him to speak. "Why are you guys so late all the time?"

Sasuke scowled up at him but didn't comment that he too, was always late. Instead the boy sent him a speculative look, then shrugged. "The routine's all screwed up, and we have to be here earlier than we're used to."

Kakashi raised a brow and waited for the boy to elaborate. Sasuke sighed and rubbed his neck in frustration.

"Naruto works on routines- you know, do the same thing everyday, at the same time," He looked up at the jounin, and Kakashi nodded in understanding. "I guess he feels comfortable knowing what to expect. But now, everyday is different and it's freaking him out."

"And that's why you both are late in the mornings? Shouldn't he be used to _this _routine by now?" he glanced over to see Kaori talking to the hooded blond, who just stared at her with his usual glassy eyes.

Sasuke shrugged. "Well, it's because he's spending more time cleaning in the morning. It's taking him longer because he's upset."

Kakashi suddenly remembered how clean and spotless the Uchiha main house was. Naruto cleaned that whole place every morning? An idea came to him, and he gave a small smile. "Alright, let's go."

They headed to Training Area Four which was more of a field of sparse grass, and as they approached, he called Naruto over to him and had Sasuke and Kaori spar. Naruto stood in front of him and waited, eyes resting on his shoulder and not on his face.

"I'm going to show you a jutsu that will be most helpful to you," he made the seals as he spoke, "Kage bunshin no jutsu." The shadow clone popped into existence next to Naruto and patted him on the shoulder, making the blond jump and stare up at it in surprise. "These shadow clones are solid, and are a great help in a fight, or in reconnaissance, or...I don't know, a helping hand when you're cleaning- or something like that." He canceled the jutsu and showed Naruto the seals again. Naruto tried the jutsu twice before he got it correct, and stood next to his clone, who looked just as miserable as its creator. Then the clone popped away and the blond turned and looked directly at him, and to his complete surprise, the boy's lips turned up in a small smile.

"Thank you," the boy rasped, eyes showing his complete gratitude, and Kakashi was actually embarrassed as the boy scuttled away and showed Sasuke the jutsu. He expected the Uchiha to look jealous, or immediately want a jutsu of his own, but the boy merely sent him a grateful look, and while Naruto practiced making more than one bunshin, he continued to spar with Kaori.

And Kakashi was surprised at how content he felt, in that moment.

--

The next day both boys were there when he showed up, and Sasuke wasn't in a sour mood, and this continued on for the next week, until it wasn't they who were late, but Kaori. Except not only was she late, she didn't show up at all.

"I think she's sick," Sasuke commented, and Kakashi was inclined to agree. They decided to not take a mission, and instead they trained, and later went home.

But Kaori didn't show up the next day either.

**TBC**

**Kaori is clearly the deadlast in this fic**


	8. Chapter 8

Disclaimer: Naruto does not belong to Kirsdarkenvar

**The Ghost and the Darkness**

**Chapter Eight**

Sasuke and Naruto stood under the shade of the tree near the bridge, waiting for Kakashi-sensei to arrive. He was going to be very late, as was common and expected, but Naruto didn't mind waiting. The villagers that passed over the bridge did not often look at people who were not in motion, and since he truly did not want to be noticed, he was content to be as still as possible until he was forced otherwise.

He smoothed the hood down over his eyes, and was surprised to feel the vitality running through his veins; ever since Kakashi-sensei had shown him the Kage Bunshin, he'd had more energy to spare than he was used to. The bunshin would help him clean the house every morning, and the work was done twice as fast without him worrying that the job wasn't being done right. After all, a part of him was doing the work.

This resulted in Sasuke being in a better mood, which meant he was less likely to hiss threats at him, which he had been doing very often of late. It had left him unsure- would he really kill him, or were they empty words?

As he pondered this, his eyes drifted to the left, and jumped when he saw Kaori next to him. He hadn't heard her! He sidled a few steps away from her- she was too close, and then he got a good look at her face. It was swollen, mottled with purple and blue bruises, and one eye was so bad that it was nothing but a mass of swollen, damaged tissue. There was blood caked along the side of her face and running down a swollen neck. Her right eye seemed like it was the only one functioning, at it stared at him, empty and sad.

Naruto swallowed and wrung his fingers in distress just as Kakashi-sensei popped up, his eyes running over them. "Still no Kaori huh," and Sasuke shook his head in reply. "Very well. We can't continue missions without her, so let's go over to her place and see what's keeping her."

They moved toward the inner village, and Naruto hesitated, looking nervously as Kaori, whose swollen lips moved up in a slight smile. He rubbed his head, and quickly followed after the others, keeping his head low and darting wary glances at the villagers. Had that one looked too closely at him? Was there rage in that one's eyes? _They_ stirred, and he felt _Them_ looking through his eyes, and they watered with the strain of _Their _presence. Kakashi-sensei stopped them in front of a cottage that was trapped between a food mart and a private business, and to Naruto it looked out of place as Kakashi-sensei rapped on the wooden door.

It was answered by an older woman with graying brown hair and swollen eyes from constant crying.

"Y-Yes," she choked out, and Naruto saw Sasuke's shoulders tense at her despairing tone. He glanced at Kaori, whose one good eye was shedding tears as she stared up at the woman.

"I'm Kaori's sensei, and she hasn't shown up for missions," Kakashi-sensei addressed in a very careful tone as the woman broke down and buried her face in a shaking hand.

"We can't find her," the woman sobbed. "She hasn't been home for three days!"

"When was the last time you had seen her?" he asked, voice more brisk. Sasuke's head was already swiveling about, but he gazed through her, not seeing that she was standing next to Naruto.

"She went to do missions, like she had been doing the last two months."

"Did you alert the authorities?"

The woman wiped her face with shaking hand and looked up at him. "No, we didn't want to over-react. Kaori had a habit of going off on her own, but not for this long! I-I fear-"

"Sasuke. Naruto." Kakashi-sensei cut in, and both boys looked up at him. "Sweep the village. Ask anyone you know if they have seen her. In the meantime, I'm going to the Tower to report her disappearance."

Sasuke nodded and grabbed Naruto's arm, pulling them away from the cottage and into the street. "Alright, I go east, you go west. Search every place between here and the walls. Meet me at the bridge at sundown- with or without Kaori." Sasuke was about to rush off, but he paused and looked back at him. "And no one's going to kill you. They try, and you get rid of them. Understood?"

Naruto nodded and smoothed down his hood, watching in fear as Sasuke rushed away. He turned, glancing at the villagers, before moving eastward. Kaori followed along with a limp, eye focused on him.

At sundown he returned to a frustrated Sasuke and Kakashi-sensei, both who seemed more concerned the longer her absence. Already several other ninja had been alerted, and Kakashi had already summoned a dog to sniff her out. But her scent had long faded, and it was too hard to pinpoint where she had gone.

They returned to the compound with Sasuke in a dark mood, and Naruto feeling strangely confused. Why was Kaori following him? Did she not know she was dead? He noticed that once they passed through the gates of the compound, she stopped, watching them go in longingly, but not following.

---

The next day, Sasuke was startled to see the members of Team Eight and Ten hanging out at the bridge.

"Hey Sasuke-kun!" Ino called gleefully, and he moved to walk closer to Naruto. He glared at the girl when she approached, and her eyes fell on Naruto, who was staring at her, face pinched. She scowled and moved away as Kiba and Shikamaru approached.

"We got a mission to find your missing teammate," Kiba informed them, brown eyes full of excitement warring with sympathy. "This sucks balls though. What do you think happened to her?"

Sasuke felt rage pass through him. "If I knew that Inuzuka, we wouldn't need your help searching for her," he snapped, and ignored Akamaru's growling, though upon ignoring it noticed that Akamaru wasn't growling at him, but at Naruto, who at first was looking at something, then turned his eyes toward the dog. The puppy's ears fell back against its small skull and it gave a small whimper before flopping itself on Inuzuka's head. The dog boy frowned and sent Naruto a curious look, but the blond was instead looking at the others before staring at the ground- then alternately throwing odd looks at the area next to him. Sometimes he knew he would never understand what fully went on in Naruto's brain. All that night he had tossed and turned in bed, unable to sleep because he was seeing his dead family all about him, with two new added faces, Kaori and Naruto, but Naruto remained on his pillow most of the night, reading or whispering to himself, which was so much the norm that it bothered him that Naruto wasn't upset about Kaori's disappearance.

They split up, digging through sections of the village in search of Yoshina Kaori, and with every empty lead, Sasuke felt dread course through him. He'd gotten along with Kaori- she wasn't a fawning girl only concerned about looks or her future marital status, and she hadn't talked their ears off. She was a decent sparring partner, and he had thought, that they had been lucky to get her, and not Sakura or Ino. She'd actually been...cool...

And now they couldn't find her.

---

Naruto stood at the bridge, hood all the way down, and kept darting glances at Kaori, who remained near him, staring at him- waiting, it was obvious that she was waiting for him to do something. Or more like ask something. He had returned to the bridge soon after everyone had departed to search for Kaori.

He looked at her again. "Um...what happened?" he asked, and cringed when a passing villager looked down at him in puzzlement. He kept his head low until the man had moved on, then looked up at Kaori. The girl opened her mouth, and he could see several teeth missing.

"Dad got mad," she gurgled sadly, blood and rusted puffs spilled from her mouth. "It was nothing new- but I cut him this time...and he..." She shrugged and continued to stare at him. "That you, Naruto?" she asked suddenly. "I barely recognize you...look so different." her voice faded.

_Their_ laughter echoed through his head like a ringing bell, and his eyes fluttered in response, making him waver on his feet. Colors distorted, like water running through a pastel painting, and he coasted along with the sensation, forcing himself not to fight or struggle. He just let it run through him, the mesh of color and the strange sense of euphoria, like he was flo-

"Hey," a voice crashed through him like a ball through glass, and Naruto's head snapped forward to see one of the boys from Team Ten, Shikamaru, gripping his arm, dark eyes full of concern. He blinked rapidly and tried to pull his arm away, but the villager had a good grip on him. "You okay?" he asked, and he quickly nodded in a hopes that the boy would release him. "I don't think so," Shikamaru's voice was laced with doubt. "You're eyes were rolled up into your head."

Naruto quickly looked away, instead noticing that Kaori was staring across the river, her eye focused on one spot. She turned her head slowly and looked at him, then back at the spot, a far bank full of moss and high weeds. He pulled his arm from the villager's loosening grip and moved over to the railing, squinting to see what was there.

"What is it?" Shikamaru asked, and joined him at the railing, trying to look where he was. "Do you see something?"

Naruto nodded, even though he didn't, and moved down the bridge until it was no longer over the river, but over the bank, and dropped down over the side, landing on wet earth and weeds. Shikamaru followed after him, and together they trekked carefully along the bank, startling frog and mosquitoes as they passed, until the stench of death assaulted them, along with a host of flies, and they stopped before Kaori's body.

"Shiiit," breathed Shikamaru, a hand flying over his nose as he stared down in disbelief at Team Seven's third member. Her whole body was bloated gray with water, face almost unrecognizable. She wore the clothing he remembered from four days ago, though most of it was torn in random places. It seemed she had floated along in the river and had gotten tangled in some of the thicker roots that stretched out from the bank and often caught things.

Shikamaru looked at the body, then at Naruto, who was standing even closer to her, seeming unaware of the smell or the cloud of flies buzzing around them and on the body. His face was empty, not the 'this is too shocking for proper emotion', but a more like, 'I'm only mildly disturbed' empty. He watched as the blond lifted his hooded head and looked to his right, then back down at the body.

"I'll go find one of our sensei's," Shikamaru offered, the the blond nodded, not looking away from the body. He was grateful to go, if only to get away from the smell and Uzumaki's apathy.

As the villager left, he turned to Kaori, who stared miserably at her body. "Just when you think you'll live forever," she muttered.

"Nothing lasts forever," Naruto rasped, and _They_ roared _Their_ amusement through him. _They_ understood, _They_ agreed, and _They_ rejoiced in this knowledge, while he sank into the knowledge that this too, would be him one day- dead and forgotten, by someone's hand.

They started to arrive within fifteen minutes of Shikamaru's departure, Kakashi-sensei and Sasuke, all of Team Eight, and eventually, the rest of Team Ten. They looked on in grim silence as the medic nins came to examine her body before lifting her into a black bag and carrying her away.

"Who could have done this?" the red-eyed woman asked angrily, an arm resting on her own genin, as if to comfort herself that at least her genin were still alive and well. Kaori turned and looked at him, and Naruto cringed and sighed.

"Her father," he rasped, and every eye turned on him. He flinched and continued, "She told me that he didn't like her." He didn't miss the suspicious look on Sasuke's pale face, but mostly he saw the rage in his sensei's eye, and the slight tremors running through his body.

"Really," Kakashi-sensei's voice was like frozen steel, and all the gennin looked up at him with wide eyes. Kakashi-sensei turned on his heels and began to march up the bank, and they followed him all the way to the Yoshina cottage and watched as he banged on the door.

The woman opened the door, looking even worse than yesterday, and gasped in alarm at all the people standing in her small yard.

"Where is your husband?" Kakashi-sensei snapped, and the woman's red blotchy face paled.

"I-I don't know! He's been out searching for K-K-"

A wave of killing intent blew over them and the woman choked. "I tried to stop him!" she shrieked "He didn't mean to- h-he was drunk!"

A chuunin who had been posted at the house frowned and looked at Kakashi-sensei. "I'm guessing you found her," and at his stiff nod, and chuunin sighed and stepped forward, taking hold of her arm. "Alright lady, let's go. We need to have a long talk. One you're not going to enjoy, I imagine." He pulled her from the doorway, and they all moved aside as he passed through. "And don't you worry, we're going to find Mr. Yoshina, and have an even _longer_ talk with him." The woman blubbered incoherently until she was out of sight.

Naruto turned his head, spying Kaori standing there, watching her mother go. Then she turned and looked at him, undamaged eye leaking tears, lifted a hand and gave him a weak wave. Then she turned, walked away from them, and he watched as she slowly became transparent, and faded away.

----------

That night Sasuke was once again plagued by nightmares, this time instead of Kaori and Naruto dead along with his family, it was just Naruto, sitting in his own blood, staring it him with luminous blue eyes, blame and betrayal swimming amongst the tears. He woke with a start, sitting up and blinking rapidly, spotting Naruto in his corner; the blond was reading something so intently, that he didn't stir when Sasuke sat up. There was a small night-light in the socket, and Naruto had the book angled toward it.

"What are you reading?" Sasuke asked, rubbing his eyes, and Naruto lifted his gaze and blinked at him. Strange- with the gloom and the soft light, it almost seemed as if his eyes were glowing. Naruto lowered the book and slid it along the floor, until it was close enough for Sasuke to see.

_The Amateurs Guide to Horticulture: And Wowing your Neighbors_

Sasukestared at the book, then looked at the blond flatly. "You're reading about plants, two in the morning?"

Naruto dragged the book back to him and continued to read. Sasuke threw his legs off the side of the bed and narrowed his eyes. "Tell me Naruto, are you at least minutely upset that our team mate is dead?"

"Everyone dies," Naruto whispered in reply, and Sasuke glared angrily at his dismissive words.

"You don't need to tell me that. I _know_. I just don't get why you don't seem to care."

Naruto's eyes drifted up from the book and looked at him, and for once, there wasn't any fear or anxiety in them. "No one's going to care when _I_ die."

Sasuke folded his arms and stared at the blond until the boys eyes drifted back to the stupid book about plants. He was wrong- he was so very wrong. _He _would care, he would care very much, but it would be a cold day in hell if he ever admitted such a thing. Instead he lay back in bed and turned his back to Naruto, tossing his covers over his body.

"Well now we're one member short," he stated after some time, and the rustle of a turned page was the only response he received. Sasuke sighed and shut his eyes, but it was a while before he fell into an uneasy sleep, plagued with the dead.

He completely missed Naruto's rocking, cradling his head and whispering to himself- the book forgotten.

----------

Kakashi wandered through the cottage, sharp eye taking in the pictures on the walls, the little knick-knacks lining the tables. All night he had been at Obito's grave, wallowing in his failure, his inability to watch over someone precious to him. That his genin would be murdered by her own father, his mouth filled with bile as he slipped into her room, and made a complete stop in the doorway, eye going wide as he took in the bedroom. From wall to ceiling were pictures, some blown up, some regular size, and as he took a careful step in, he stared incredulously at the object of Kaori's obvious obsession. There were hundreds of candid photos of Naruto, him seeming completely unaware that they had been taken.

There were pictures of him bending down to pull weeds- he remembered that mission- pictures of him staring at the ground, looking over at something, a picture of him and Sasuke sparring. All pictures of Naruto, in the same grey sweater, looking pale, weak, and drawn; he looked very ill in most of the shots, and he realized by the background, that these had been taken during Naruto's Academy days. He turned in a complete circle, eyes taking it in, and noticed on a dresser a hooded doll with blond hair peeking out. He picked up the doll and noticed that there were three lines drawn on each cheek, and that the wisps of blond hair seemed too long, and as he touched it realized that the strands were real.

His eyes fell on a book labeled 'diary'...no secrecy there, apparently, and he picked it up and opened a random page halfway through the book.

_I walked past Naruto today during lunch and I noticed that he smelled really good- like fresh laundry good. I'm not used to boys smelling so good._

He flipped through another page.

_Naruto doesn't like Sakura or Ino, which is cool, because I hate both of them. It's so fitting that we would both hate the same things._

He flipped closer to the ending.

_I was leaving the girls bathroom today and I saw Sasuke dragging Naruto from the bathroom. Naruto was bloody and screaming that someone couldn't make him. Nara Shikamaru was there too. I wonder what they were trying to make him do. I wanted to go to his rescue and get him away from Uchiha, but I was too scared. I went into the bathroom and saw chunks of Naruto's hair on the ground._

He glanced in alarm at the blond Naruto doll and flipped to the second to the last page.

_I hurt all over, but even with that, today was a good day. I still can't believe I'm on the same team as Naruto! And we met our new sensei today, and he was really cool. I thought he would give Naruto a hard time like that bastard Mizuki, but he wasn't mean to him at all! I hurt, but today was great!_

On the last page, the words were scribbled and smeared.

_Naruto doesn't like me. Daddy doesn't like me. No one likes me._

Kakashi quickly shut the diary and placed it back on the desk, taking a deep breath and staring at the pictures on the walls and ceiling. Just as he moved, his foot touched something, and he looked down to see a plastic wrapped package with a small card taped to it. He bent down and picked it up, pushing open the card.

_Happy tenth birthday Naruto_

_Love,_

_Kaori._

Kakashi sighed and placed the present under his arm, quickly leaving the room and exiting the cottage. He was about to be late for her funeral, so he hopped onto the rooftops and headed for the funeral home.

When he arrived, it was to see that Team Eight and Ten had arrived, and surprisingly Gai's Team, and Umino Iruka, all decked in black. He stood next to Sasuke and Naruto, both were very pale, and it seemed that Sasuke had dressed Naruto in his clothes, perhaps because Naruto didn't own any black. The service started, a coffin with Kaori's picture sitting on top, and it was cruelly, a very sunny day with a perfectly cool breeze.

Out of the corner of his eye he surveyed Sasuke, taking in the shadows around his eyes, and the fine line in which his lips were pressed, suppressing the rage that swirled in his black eyes. His hands gripped the white lilies so hard that the stems had already bent. He gaze moved on to Naruto, who was not in a hood for once, and it was apparent that this upset the blond very much, judging by the way his eyes darted around under his uneven bangs, and the unhappy droop of his lips. Once again Kakashi noticed his hair, and saw that it was actually approaching the middle of his back. But what had his attention was the fact that his hair was in different layers, and not the professional kind, but the...pulling chunks of his hair out...kind.

Just then, and he wasn't sure what made him notice, but his eye fell on the pair of lilies Naruto held in one hand, and watched in silent shock as the bouncy white petals began to droop and crinkle, turning a rotting brown until they hung withered in his thin hand. Kakashi looked incredulously at Naruto's face, and at first the boy didn't seem to notice that the lilies had died in his hands, but then he glanced down at his flowers, taking in that they were in fact dead, then his gaze drifted away, as if flowers dying in his hands were a common occurrence.

Kakashi was speechless. When the speech was over, they placed their flowers on her coffin, and he saw Sasuke frown at Naruto's dead flowers- good, he wasn't the only one seeing things.

As they left, Kakashi stopped both boys. "Naruto, Kaori meant to give this to you," and he handed the package over to the boy. Naruto flipped the letter to read the inside, blinking at the words, before placing the package under his arm and smoothing down his bangs.

"What happens now?" Sasuke asked, pulling his eyes away from the package and looking up at him.

"We can't take missions with just two members, so we'll have to wait for the Hokage to send us a replacement. Take the next few days off, and I'll notify you when we have a new member."

Sasuke nodded, and both he and Naruto ambled away. Kakashi turned back to the service, and watched as the gravediggers began to gather their shovels.

----------

Naruto sat down in the grass, wiping his sweating brow with a small napkin from his pocket, and glanced at Nabeshin, who was sitting beside him, staring up into the night sky, dark eyes full of secret thoughts.

"Um...Nabeshin?" he whispered, and the Uchiha turned his gaze onto him. "Where...where do you go when you die?"

The Uchiha frowned and looked down at his hands. "Can't say, being that I never left." He gave a wan smile and looked down at him. "Truth be told, I- we thought Sasuke-chan had brought you to take us." Naruto lifted his head and blinked at Nabeshin, who flinched and averted his gaze. "Your eyes...they are like two beacons of red light. We thought you were Death, finally come for our souls. But..." he shrugged and stared back up at the sky. "We haven't gone anywhere. It's like we're trapped."

Naruto picked at the grass. "Do you think it's quiet?"

Nabeshin shook his head and shrugged again. "Like I said, I dunno. It hasn't been very quiet so far." A glare came over his face. "They _bitch_ and _moan_ all day! Useless- all of them!" He thumped his katana in the grass in agitation.

"Naruto," someone called, and Naruto turned to see Sasuke wandering around the houses in his pajamas, head twisting around, searching for him. "Naruto!" the Uchiha called, and there was a sense of desperation about this call- he knew that the Uchiha hadn't been sleeping well these last few days. Naruto got to his feet and walked from the training field, katana swinging at his side. Sasuke caught sight of him and rushed past a decapitated Uchiha, whom he had been standing next to.

"Where have you been?" Sasuke demanded as he approached. "I've been looking all over for you," he paused as his eyes fell on his katana. "Were you training?" Naruto nodded. "Well why didn't you wake me? We could be training together." and he turned back to retrieve his katana.

----------

Haruno Sakura leaned back in her seat and closed the review booklet, which she had been going through the last two months ever since she had been sent back to the Academy. She had insisted it wasn't her fault, that the boys had made her fail, and she even overheard the jounin sensei who had tested them say that she had potential, but she had been sent back anyway.

She'd been resigned to reviewing everything over again and taking the test- and _hopefully_ get a better Team this time. She had been hiding from Ino and any of the others she used to associate with, because she knew she wouldn't be able to bear the teasing she would get if they found out she wasn't a genin.

The door slid open and Iruka-sensei entered, face solemn, and he gestured for her to meet him at his desk. Standing up, she picked up her finished booklet and rushed over to him.

"Have a seat," he gestured to the one across from him and she sat down, suddenly feeling nervous. Why was he so serious? "Well, I have good news for you, I guess," and he looked uncomfortable with his words. "A spot on a Team has opened up, and the Hokage has given the okay for you to take that place."

Sakura bounced in her seat, eyes shining with excitement and relief. "Finally! Who am I paired with?"

Again Iruka-sensei looked uncomfortable. "Uchi-"

Sakura squealed and hopped up and down. The gods were surely smiling down upon her! Not only was she getting on a Team, but she was getting on the same Team as Sasuke-kun!

"Settled down," Iruka-sensei sent her an irritated look, and she sat back into her seat.

"What happened to their third member?" she asked, and at this the man sighed.

"She died," he stated, and Sakura felt herself pale. "So I imagine both boys are very upset. So please, don't make things difficult for them. Meet them on the rooftop here, at seven tomorrow."

Sakura nodded and stood up. "Of course," she quickly headed for the door and it was as she was exiting the Academy grounds that his words hit her. Both boys. Sasuke-kun and... "Oh no," she breathed, and felt much of the excitement fade.

Uzumaki Naruto.

**TBC**

**You notice Naruto is a little less frightened than he usually is. He even managed to go off in the village on his own. I'm a bit surprised at the general dislike for Kaori- which is why I posted this faster than I orginally intended. I hope this appeases a few of the disgruntled readers. By the way, there are no pairings in this fic. Thanks for the reviews!**


	9. Chapter 9

Disclaimer: Naruto does not belong to Kirsdarkenvar

**Chapter Nine**

Naruto stared down at the package and puzzled over the words written on the small card.

_Happy Tenth Birthday Naruto._

He bit his lip- what he couldn't understand was, what had been so happy about that birthday? He barely remembered it; his birthday happened during the Fall Festival- _They_ spent most of the week tormenting him, and Sasuke had taken to tying him up. There was no happiness there- there never _had_ been, and he couldn't understand why Kaori would write such a thing. His eyes narrowed. Unless, she had sent it to mock him- make fun of him, to remind him that his tenth birthday was nothing more than another year living in his own wretched existence.

"What's in there?" Sasuke's voice made him jump, and he looked back at his roommate. Sasuke had been searching the whole compound for hidden scrolls that he believed his relatives might have hidden, and judging by the pale sheen of sweat that lay over his skin, the search had not been pleasant. But the dark-haired boy was good at pretending he wasn't bothered, and instead he stood there with calm eyes, and an empty face. "Is that the present Kaori never gave you?" he asked, his dark eyes falling on the package with interest.

Naruto gave a small shrug. "She mocks me," he muttered, and Sasuke frowned at him before picking up the package and tearing through the plastic. The contents revealed to be a black sweater, thinner of fabric and smaller than he usually wore, with a red swirl on the back. Sasuke tossed it to him but he moved out of the way, and they both watched as it flopped to the wooden floor.

"Oh that's real nice," Sasuke remarked, giving him a flat stare as he leaned down and picked up the sweater, shaking it.

"It's dirty," Naruto replied, moving away, lest the dust and filth get all over him.

"It's brand new Naruto!" Sasuke snapped, then tossed the sweater onto the bed. "The girls' dead for gods' sake! The least you could do is wear the damn thing!" and he stormed out of the room.

Naruto eyed the sweater, then picked it up with his thumb and index finger, and quickly rushed toward the laundry room, but not before dodging into a closet when he spotted Sasuke's mother coming out of a room.

By that evening, he had tentatively put the black sweater on, and had to swallow the bile that rose in his throat as he did so.

-----------

Kakashi stepped through the gates of the compound and shuddered as the cool, almost dead-seeming wind snuck its way through his vest. He had recently reviewed Haruno Sakura's profile after three days of waiting for an Academy student to qualify, and he wasn't sure if he wanted to go through the process of getting acquainted again. It was too soon in his opinion, to introduce a new member three days after the previous one had passed- but he knew that Sasuke would be anxious to get back to training and missions, and Naruto- well, he wasn't sure what Naruto would feel about meeting someone new. But it was his duty to notify his Team of changes, and this would be a big one. The only thing that he was hopeful about was Sakura's more social personality; perhaps his Team wouldn't be so antisocial anymore.

He slipped through the door of the main house, nose crinkling at the sharp cleanser atmosphere, and walked toward the sound of soft plates clattering. He stopped in the doorway of the kitchen and watched as Sasuke polished off the rest of his meal, and Naruto sat across from him, sulking like a five year old unhappy with the meal his mother had made him. Before him was what looked like a bowl of soup, through it had something slightly thick and white floating in it. Every few seconds Sasuke would glance at Naruto with a glare, and in response the blond would would pick up his spoon and sip reluctantly at the soup. The very atmosphere felt heavy with a type of melancholy repetition, there was no talking, or joking, or any emotion between the two that might say that they enjoyed one another's company.

He coughed to get their attention, and Sasuke immediately surged to his feet, hand slipping down and gripping the katana that had been leaning against his chair. His dark eyes were wide with surprise, then alarmed as he turned them to Naruto. The blond was still in his seat, but he was shaking and gripping the spoon so tightly that it was cutting into his skin. The boy's eyes were fluttering widely under his lashes while they settled on him, and his skin turned an alarming shade of white.

"Go to the room, Naruto," Sasuke commanded, and within seconds the blond was out of his chair and down the hall. Sasuke sighed, then glared at him. "_You can't come here_, Naruto doesn't like it. You'll make him crazy."

Kakashi stepped into the kitchen and peered at the bowl of soup, raising a brow in question.

"It's chicken broth with pieces of bread in it," Sasuke answered with a sigh, and picked up the bowl, pouring it into the sink. He cleared off the table silently then looked up at him in question.

"We've got a new replacement Team member, so let's meet at the top of the roof like the last time," he watched as Sasuke's face darkened at his words. "We should be back to missions by the day after tomorrow. We'll spend tomorrow getting to know each other."

"Who's our new Team-mate?"

"Haruno-"

"Fuck," Sasuke breathed in clear frustration, running a hand through his hair in agitation.

Kakashi shook his head. "Little boys shouldn't be using such language," this earned him a glare. "I'm guessing you know her."

"She's useless," Sasuke snapped, "and Naruto can't stand her."

"Ah," Kakashi ran a finger along the table top, peering at his dust free finger. "This is bad news for him then."

The Uchiha scowled. "I'm not telling him anything tonight- or I'll never get him out of here tomorrow." His eyes narrowed. "And don't come back here. If there's something you need to tell us- knock on the door. I can't let anyone in here- Naruto doesn't like it."

Kakashi gave a wry smile and nodded, and as he turned to leave, he gestured to the windows.

"Why is there newspaper on the windows?" Sasuke looked at the windows and shrugged.

"Don't know, don't care."

Kakashi gave a wry smile and exited the home, glanced around at the gloom, felt a chill run through him, and wondered if he had passed through a ghost. This place sure felt like one more and more.

----------

Sakura was nervous. It was ten in the morning and she had been on the roof of the Academy since seven, which had been the time she was given. Now, her mind was running through all the scenarios in which might be happening, the worst of them being that her reunion with Sasuke was too good to be true, and it was all an elaborate prank on her. Though she couldn't imagine Iruka-sensei pulling such a thing. Another was that she must be going crazy, and somehow dreamt this all up, and was now having problems differentiating reality from fiction. Her brain was making her work up a sweat, and she was now tugging at her hair in anxiety.

Just when she was about to leap up and run home, the door to the stairway opened, and out strolled Sasuke, looking absolutely handsome in his blue shirt and white knee-length shorts. Strapped to his back was a short bladed katana, something she had never seen at the Academy The very air about him possessed confidence and power, something he always had, and she resisted the urge to leap up and jump to his side.

Just behind him was Uzumaki, in a black hoodie and gray pants, also with a katana strapped to him, and the moment her green eyes connected with his accusing blue ones, she felt dread as his pale face tightened, and he paused. Sasuke glanced back and murmured something to him, and the blond turned those accusing eyes to him. Sasuke scowled and replied lowly, and then the two approached her.

"Hi Sasuke-kun," she stuttered, blushing as he sat down near her. He frowned and nodded in her direction, then settled for staring at nothing. Next to him, Uzumaki had his head down, locks of blond hair shielding his expression from view.

Already she had decided how she would handle Naruto- she would be sweet, and kind, and compliment him during training. She'd even share her lunch with him (boys liked to eat) and soon he would have no excuse to not like her. And if he liked her, then Sasuke-kun would like her too. Sakura suppressed a smile. It was a simple plan, easy to follow, with maximum results.

"I didn't know we were supposed to meet here at ten," she commented, and watched as Sasuke shrugged in reply. She leaned forward so she could see around Sasuke. "How are you this morning, Naruto?"

The blond didn't even look up. That was okay, eventually, he would cave.

Fifteen minutes later, a grey haired jounin popped up onto the rooftop, wandering over like he had all the time in the world. His one revealed eye ran over the three of them as he leaned against the wall.

"Ok...so I'm guessing we should introduce ourselves- again, being that we have a new member. I'll start. I'm your sensei, Hatake Kakashi, I enjoy many things as much as dislike them, by dreams and ambitions- well you'll just have to discover them for yourself-" he seemed to cut himself off and point at her. Sakura smiled weakly and swallowed.

"I'm Haruno Sakura, and I like-" She glanced at Sasuke, then quickly stopped what she was about to say. "My dream is to become a a great kunoichi. My dislikes are..." she paused, her mind running though Ino to Naruto, to many other things that bugged her that she was sure Sasuke cared not to hear. "Well, it doesn't matter," she waved her hand weakly, blushing when she noticed Sasuke was staring at her, his face stoic and empty.

"Alright. Go on Sasuke."

Sakura turned to him and smiled.

"I'm Uchiha Sasuke. I like training, anything to do with jutsu, and I hate useless people who hold us back," Sakura swallowed when his dark eyes paused on her for a second. She would never hold him back! In fact, she would encourage him to be the best everyday! "My ambition is to kill a certain man and restore my clan."

Sakura felt a chill run through her body. Kill a man? Kakashi-sensei nodded, apparently having heard this before, and looked at the third member. "What about you Naruto? Wanna say something this time?"

Wow...Naruto still ignored his sensei's? She had been sure he would start to interact once he was out of the classroom- but apparently not. She sniffed in disdain. If _she_ were his sensei, she would kick him off the Team as a defective member. She leaned forward so she could see said blond, and he was still staring down at the cement roof; she noticed a single finger tapping against his knee where his hands rested. There was silence as they seemed to wait to see if the hooded blond would say anything. And then, quite suddenly, he spoke, and this was the first time she had heard him say anything.

"I like Sasuke," she was surprised by the cool rasp of his voice, but more stunned by his words- though it appeared by the shocked look on Sasuke's face, he was more stunned than she. Even Kakashi-sensei looked a bit surprised. "I dislike..." and here he paused, rubbing his palms against his knees, as if nervous, though he hadn't looked up once. "Everything. I have no dreams or ambitions."

She watched Sasuke stare at his friend, his normally cold face still morphed in surprise.

"That's..." Kakashi-sensei gave a slight frown. "great, Naruto."

Sasuke looked at the jounin, opened his mouth to say something, but instead turned back to stare at Uzumaki. Sakura was starting to think this was weird- of course Uzumaki liked Sasuke, he practically clung to him everyday! They were always together, so why was Sasuke so surprised? Geez! The way Sasuke was reacting, one would think Naruto had confessed his undying love or something! Her eyes narrowed. He hadn't, right? She peered at the blond, taking in his pale, bony features. No, his expression didn't scream embarrassment, elation, or any of those emotions involved in a confession. In fact, Naruto looked downright miserable- which was his usual expression. No, it hadn't been a confession- it was more likely that Naruto really didn't like anything or anyone, but felt like he had to say he liked _something_. So he had said he liked Sasuke, and that's all it was.

"Tomorrow we get a miss-"

"Can't we get one today?" Sasuke interrupted, and the jounin sent him a thoughtful look.

"I suppose, if you really want one..." he watched as she nodded her head in enthusiasm. Finally! She was a real ninja, about to do a real mission. Kakashi-sensei straightened from his leaning position and headed for the stairway door. "Come on then," he gestured, and both she and Sasuke got to their feet immediately. Naruto was slower to his, and he trudged after them sullenly.

They made their way to the Hokage's Tower, where missions were being handed out. To Sakura's surprise, the one handing the missions was Iruka-sensei, who smiled when they approached his desk.

"Sasuke, Sakura, Naruto, how are you all doing?" he asked with a pleasant yet concerned smile, his eyes running over Sasuke and Naruto. To her surprise, the corner of Sasuke's mouth turned up as he shrugged, hands buried in his pockets. Naruto glanced up from his inspection of the floor, but that was all the acknowledgment he gave. She greeted her old sensei and was pleased when they were handed a mission- though she felt it a bit ridiculous when they were told what it entailed. Catching the Fire Lord wife's cat. Wow. She could tell by the barely concealed frown on Sasuke's face that he too was annoyed. Naruto, was still staring at the floor...

When they headed into the forest Kakashi-sensei split them, he with Sasuke, and to her horror, she with Naruto. They went in opposite directions, and she followed Naruto; he was as she remembered in the Academy, quick, light, and silent as they moved through the foliage, searching for the feline.

"Here _kitty_, _kitty_," she called at intervals, making cat meows in a hopes of attracting the animal. At one point, Naruto paused and looked back at her, the accusing eyes she hated so much in full mode. "W-what?" she stuttered, flushing and feeling the heat of it in her ears. "You got a better idea?" The hooded blond continued to stare at her, and as she opened her mouth to snap at him, he turned from her and continued on. She scowled at his back. "Here _kitty_, _kitty, kitty!_"

For an hour they searched, and by then she had stopped calling for the stupid animal, so it was a relief when Sasuke's voice crackled through the headset, "We found him. Head back to the designated meeting area."

Naruto abruptly turned and walked around her, heading back through the foliage, then stiffened so suddenly that she stumbled against his back, the sheathed katana hurting her chest. "Ow," she muttered and glared at Naruto, whose head drifted up and he seemed to be staring up into the canopy. "What is it?" asked, eyes darting up to take in the leaves and branches. "Did you see something?" She moved to the side so she could get a better look at his face, and stared at his pale blue eyes- the pupils seemed to stand out so sharply against the color, and they seemed unusually large. An expression came over his face- at first it was a strange look, one she could not decipher, and then his face turned dangerous. His eyes narrowed, his head lowered so he was staring at the ground, and a foot worried at the dirt. Sakura swallowed.

"Hey, Naruto?" she didn't know why she dared to ask this now, of all times, but Naruto's head was still staring at the dirt, foot digging into it. "How did your teammate die? Who was she- Yoshina Kaoru? Kaori?"

Naruto's foot stopped moving, and his head drifted up, and the usual accusing eyes were upon her again. He smoothed his hood down, sending a nervous look up into the trees.

"Beaten...to death," he rasped, and she nodded grimly, ready to move on, but was alarmed when Naruto mouth opened again, and more words came forth. "Broken and twisted, rotting and fading." She felt her face drain of blood as his eyes took on that weird look again and drifted up towards the canopy again. "The world is full of the dead," he mumbled.

"Hey Naruto, where are you?" Sasuke's voice made both of them jump, and Naruto immediately moved off toward the meeting area. Sakura paused, sending nervous looks up into the trees before reluctantly following the hooded blond.

Why did Naruto have to be so creepy?

-------

They'd been racking up missions for a full month now, all D-rank- they did three to four of them a day, on his persistence, because he had heard Inuzuka bragging about how many missions Team Eight had done, and he wanted to top that. But what really got him pacing around the bedroom that evening was that Kiba had boasted about a _C_-rank mission they had finished, and the very idea that the others were experiencing actual ninja duties, almost drove him up the walls.

So Sasuke had decided that the first thing tomorrow, he would demand a higher mission from Kakashi-sensei, and they would not leave the Tower until they had one. He was sick of cleaning peoples houses, or milking cows, or any of the lousy shit that they were coerced into doing. He wanted a real fight, a real battle- real duties. He and Naruto both needed this! And he supposed Sakura too. She was actually sort of taking everything seriously, and she didn't bug Naruto as much as he orginally had thought she would. She still talked too much though.

He stomped down the stairs and spotted Naruto in the kitchen, creating a bunshin, and he watched as the physical clone popped into existence. That one jutsu had made a world of a difference in the mornings. Things got done faster and more efficiently, Naruto had more energy and did better in their daily spars. He was very grateful that Kakashi-sensei had shown it to him. Naruto getting a new jutsu had spurred him on to finding more of his own. He had searched the compound several times, digging through houses, jumping at creaks and strange noises all the while, avoiding bloodstains and marks where someone had tried to put up a fight. The more he searched, the more he was reminded of that horrible day.

Shaking his head to rid himself of the dark thoughts, he peered at his blond companion.

"How many bunshin can you create, Naruto?"

The blond looked up at him as the bunshin began to wipe the table top rather nervously. Naruto had the look he got when he was having one of his head aches, pinched and barely lucid.

"Two," he rasped, and rubbed a hand against his forehead.

Sasuke moved farther into the kitchen. "You've got decent chakra control, but you don't really try to pull on it, do you? Try," he suggested, and the blond put his hands together to make the seals. "Pull all the chakra you have, and make as many as possible." Naruto's lips pursed, Sasuke felt the strong flow of his chakra, could even see it, a pale blue.

"Kage bunshin no jutsu!" Seven bunshin popped into existence, all of them looking alarmed. Then three more, and five more, until Sasuke had to back up to the kitchen door as they crowded into the kitchen.

"Ok," he called, alarmed at the constant flow of chakra coming from the blond, and that more bunshin began to appear, so that some of them had to move into the living rooms. "You can stop now!" he all but shouted, because now he could see that something was wrong. Naruto's eyes were wide with terror, and he was practically hyperventilating. And then the color and feel of his chakra changed, going from pale blue to an angry purple, then a bloody red. The stench of blood filled the room, and a wave of pure killing intent crashed through him. Many of the clones cried out in terror and immediately dissipated, and Sasuke was physically pushed back. Was this the Kyuubi? Was his demon side finally showing?

"Too much!" Naruto cried, his voice breaking in terror and what sounded like pain. "_Too much!_" he wailed, and Sasuke could barely see him through the raging torrent of demonic chakra.

"Naruto!" he cried, and leaped forward, but the moment he touched the chakra, he was tossed back through the doorway and onto the stairs, breaking the wooden railings. He tumbled down a few steps, his head cracking against the edges until he rested at the bottom, gasping for air. Most of his body felt numb, and there was a constant high pitched keening ringing in his ears. Where was that coming from? Pain blossomed all over his body and he groaned, turning over onto his side just as the keening abruptly stopped.

His wandering eyes managed to focus, and he could see the living room from where he was, and Naruto- was that Naruto? Yes, it was him, and he was hovering by the couch, blue eyes wide, shaking, and staring at something. Was there someone in the house? He knew Naruto hated people in the house. He opened his mouth to yell at Kakashi-sensei to leave, but warm liquid filled his mouth and he spit out- blood..? ah- his mouth _did_ hurt a lot. How had he gotten on the floor again?

"Hey Naruto," he slurred in confusion. "What happened?"

Naruto's frightened eyes turned to him from the living room, and then he popped away, disappearing. Sasuke frowned and slowly sat up, feeling his ribs cry out in pain, and his leg, and his shoulder, and especially his head. He groaned and cradled his head, feeling faint, and then he noticed that he was at the bottom of the stairs, and that half of the railing was was broken all over the staircase. He pushed a piece of wood off of him, and that was when he noticed that the table in the kitchen was smoking. And next to the table, was Naruto, lying on his back, rasping for air.

Memory returned, and he staggered to his feet, almost crying out from the pain in his legs and chest, and he felt like vomiting, but he staggered over to his roommate and almost gasped at the sight of him. It looked like someone had punched him in the face, but instead of swelling, his face simply bruised, ugly purples, reds, and black blotches that surrounded his mouth and cheeks, trailed down his throat and under his shirt.

Sasuke's dropped down to his knees and turned Naruto onto his side, for it sounded like there was blood trapped in his throat. Sure enough, Naruto gave some very ugly coughs and blood sprinkled the linoleum. Some of the capillaries in his eyes had popped, and bloody tears streaked down his face.

"Dammit," Sasuke hissed, and wrapping an arm under Naruto, slowly and painfully pulled the blond to his feet, but it was clear that he was barely conscious. Taking a deep, pain- filled breath, Sasuke took the task of dragging his friend up the stairs and into his room, where he placed him on the bed and dropped onto the floor in a bout of extreme exhaustion. Before he knew it, he was out.

--------

_**SSSSAAAASSSUUUKKKEEE.**_

Someone was saying his name.

_**SSSSAAAASSSUUUKKKEEE.**_

He felt a chill run through him, and felt his brain struggle to wake him. The voice frightened him, terrified him actually, and he knew he had to open his eyes, knew he had to look and see who was calling him, but he didn't want to. He really didn't.

_**SSSSAAAASSSUUUKKKEEE, **_and this time there was a warm whiff of blood that touched his face. Sasuke's eyes shot opened and he gave a strangled cry deep in his throat.

Naruto's face was inches from his, right side against the carpet. He was on his knees so that his butt was in the air, with his head pressed to the carpet, his arms laying at his sides limply. His blue eyes were wide, very wide, with blotches of broken capillaries within them, so most of the white was red and bleeding into his blue iris's. His mouth was twisted up in the most maniacal grin Sasuke had ever seen, and was staring directly into his eyes.

Sasuke wanted to jump away, but his body was too sluggish and unresponsive, and all he could do was stare back into those wide, unfamiliar eyes, as they stared into his. Blood trickled through the blond's teeth as he continued to grin, continued to stare.

_**WAKE NOW, SASUKE? **_The voice didn't match the bruised face- the voice was too high- and at the same time, too deep. There was too much madness and cruelty in that voice- he could smell the evil coming from its mouth. All he could do was lie there and give a weak nod against the carpet, feeling his brain slosh in his cranium, and he felt a wave of nausea rush through him.

Naruto's head turned, face pressed into the carpet, head turning away, and the prone body gave a rather vicious shudder, then Naruto's head turned back, and the wide eyes were gone, the grin had disappeared, and all that was left was the familiar boy he knew, looking frightened and in pain. His legs straightened out until he was lying flat on the carpet, and his blue eyes glazed over, blood still trickling from his mouth.

Sasuke took a deep breath and slowly sat up, back rubbing against the bed, nausea roaring over him and causing his eyes to water. He knew this feeling. He had a concussion, and he had lost consciousness, which he knew was a no-no when having a concussion. Had Naruto- or whatever that was, awakened him from a possible coma- or death? He blinked at the blond, taking his appearance in, noticing the ugly bruising on his arms, where most of his sweater had been ripped away. What day was it? Was it still the same day? How long had he been unconscious- both times? Putting his arm on the bed for support, Sasuke slowly and painfully pulled himself to his feet. His whole body hurt. After standing up straight and taking a few deep breaths, hoping nothing was broken, he turned Naruto over and slowly pulled him back onto the bed that had blood smeared along the sheets. He pulled the kunai out from under his pillow and sliced away the rest of his gray sweater, and stared down at the deep bruising covering all of Naruto's chest, stomach, and arms.

"What's this?" he croaked, and stared at the spiral tattoo marking that shown darkly on Naruto's bruised stomach.

"Seal," Naruto gurgled, startling him, for he had thought the boy was unconscious. Naruto lifted a hand and flopped it down on his stomach.

"Seal? Seal for what? The Kyuubi?" Naruto shuddered at the name but gave a weak nod. Sasuke frowned. "W- You mean it's _inside_ of you?" Naruto nodded again. "You mean, you're _not_ Kyuubi- its been sealed _inside_ of you?" Instead of a nod Naruto's hands flew to his ears.

"What?!" he cried, his voice in literal tatters. "Why won't she stop _screaming_?" Naruto began to writhe on the bed. "_Make her stop- make her stop, Sasuke!_"

"What are you talking about?!" Sasuke was starting to feel frantic, spinning about the room but seeing no one there, only making his headache and nausea worse. "Who are you talking about?! No one is _here_!"

Naruto removed a hand from his ear and pointed to a picture on the wall before replacing his hand on his ear and giving a low, broken keen. Sasuke stared at the portrait. It was a family portrait, but he had cut Itachi out of it, leaving only his father and his mother with him. He stared at the picture, then looked down at the bloody blond. He wanted to spit, wanted to punch him, scream at him that it wasn't funny, that how _dare_ he insinuate...

He stopped breathing. Naruto running from areas of the house, Naruto walking around empty spaces as if someone were there, Naruto staring at odd things...Naruto somehow knowing about Kaori's father when he _knew_ the girl hadn't said anything about her home life, _knew_ this because Naruto had _always_ been with him, and he would have heard her, if she had said such.

Naruto...could see...the dead..?

Sasuke blinked several times, letting this knowledge run through him, then looked down at the blond, who had become very quiet, and saw that he had stopped writhing, instead staring emptily at the ceiling, body sporting a fine tremble. Naruto could see the dead- which meant he must see his mother and father.

"Naruto!" he leaned over and shook the blond by his shoulders. "Where is she? Is she here? Is she in this room?" Naruto's head flopped about with each shake, but he didn't reply, eyes remaining empty. Sasuke shook him once more, before releasing him and dashing out of the room and into the hallway. "Mom!" he called, and rushed through every room, calling her name, and finding no evidence of her. Then he left the house and ran the streets of the Uchiha compound, calling out the names of aunts and cousins, uncles, nieces, and nephews.

But no one answered.

Pain and exhaustion finally overcame his adrenaline rush, and he slumped down onto a porch, and rested his aching head on his knees.

This place was a tomb.

--------

He returned to find that Naruto was as he had left him, and he began to clean up his companion. Naruto didn't have any surface wounds, all of the bleeding was under the skin, and after he had cleaned him up, Naruto seemed to regain some life, just enough so that he could crawl into his corner and curl up into a ball, facing the wall.

Then he turned to himself, and touched the tender and swollen parts of his body. Nothing felt broken, but he had three large bumps on the back and sides of his head. He had a few splinters stuck under his skin as well, and he carefully removed those too, all the while his mind whirled about what Naruto had told him- it was almost too much to handle.

Naruto _wasn't_ Kyuubi- the fox was sealed _inside_ of him, making them two separate entities. That mean person he thought Naruto was always talking to when he whispered to himself, must in fact be the Nine Tailed Fox demon. He felt a chill run through him.

And then, there was Naruto seeing dead people. Had he seen Kaori? Did he really see his mother? No, it couldn't be true- then his own thoughts gave him pause. Maybe it _was_ true, and that the reason _he_ could see them was because the Fox could see the dead. That made sense. But why hadn't Naruto said anything about it all this time?

_Because you wouldn't have believed him,_ his mind whispered to him, and he flushed with shame. Naruto wasn't a liar- why would he lie about something so sensitive? He hadn't lied about the villagers being after him, and it had taken a brick through the window to get Sasuke to believe him.

So...Naruto could see the dead.

His eyes fell on his katana, which was leaning against a dresser, and he could not help the grin that grew on his face. Naruto could see the dead, talk to the dead..._learn_ from the dead.

Oh, the possibilities! Sasuke choked on his laughter before giving in, roaring out loud in his delight, missing the flinch that ran through Naruto's body. He laughed until his ribs told him to shut up, and he went down to the kitchen to make a cup of coffee, needing the caffeine to keep him from falling asleep.

He never stopped grinning, though.

-----------

Sakura wasn't surprised to hear her name called upon as she passed the flower shop, and even turned with a smile as she spotted Ino in the doorway.

"Hey forehead girl," Ino greeted smugly as Sakura approached, "haven't seen you in a while. How's that Team of yours?"

"Which one?" Sakura replied, enjoying the look of surprise and confusion that graced the blond's face.

"You have more than one?" she asked with a cocked brow, moving to stand behind the register, leaning forward in interest.

"Nah," she waved her hand dismissively. "I was with these two losers that were so bad, they got sent back to the Academy. I had to wait a few days, but then I got on," and she paused here, watching Ino's wide eyes, then gushed, "Sasuke-kun's Team."

She expected Ino to looked pissed, jealous, and start to insult her about her looks, but Ino simply straightened from leaning on the counter and gave her an almost pitying look.

"Wow, that must suck, huh?" the blond said. "I mean, with what happened and all." The girl looked quite serious as she stared at her.

Sakura shrugged. "Yeah, I heard that the other girl died from a beating- but we get along great," she assured hurriedly, watching Ino's face. The blond actually looked worried. "What?"

Ino sighed, and leaned against the counter, glancing at the one other customer browsing for chrysanthemums in the back. "You weren't there, you know, when she went missing, but we all got called out to look for her. My Team, and Team Eight. We searched everywhere, but it was Uzumaki and Shikamaru who found her. She was on the bank, dead for days." Ino shuddered at the memory, her voice lowering enough that Sakura had unconsciously leaned forward to hear her. "The story was, her father killed her." Sakura gasped, and Ino nodded in reply. "But the creepiest thing was, that Uzumaki didn't even seem to care that she was dead. He just stood by her body like it was a dead frog or something." Sakura paled considerably. "Shikamaru was really weirded out, you know? I mean, what kind of guy doesn't care if his Teammate is dead? You better watch out for him, Sakura. He's the kind of guy that _won't_ go out of his way to help you in a fight. He's the kind who will watch you die and not care as long as you don't get in his way." Sakura straightened from leaning forward and stared at her ex-friend. Ino ran a strand of her blond hair through her fingers, inspecting it before looking at back at her. "And you watch out for Sasuke too. He wasn't exactly broken up either, and you know how weird _he's_ gotten since Naruto showed up. You watch your back."

Sakura's eyes roved over the store, taking in the beautiful flowers, the air teaming with floral life, her finger tapping against the counter. Then she looked back at the blond. "Okay," she said, and calmly exited the shop.

**TBC**

**Wave Country arc next chapter (i'm not looking forward to that at all.)**

**Of course, now Sasuke knows that Naruto learned how to use the katana from a deceased Uchiha, and is now reveling in the opportunities seeing the dead might provide.**

**Sakura's wariness of both boys will create better character building for her. **

**And yes, that was Kyuubi that awoke Sasuke to make sure he didn't fall into a coma or die from his concussion. Oh, and Naruto saying he liked Sasuke really was nothing more than an excuse to say he actually _liked_ something.**


	10. Chapter 10

Disclaimer: Naruto does not belong to Kirsdarkenvar

**Ghost and the Darkness**

**Chapter Ten**

The residual laughter in his head had faded to an acceptable hum, along with the headache, enough that Naruto managed to lift his head from the floor and turn his body over, for he had spent the night staring at the wall in his corner. The room was empty; Sasuke had spent the evening downstairs, leaving him with _Them_ as his sole company, and often times he wondered which was worse. He hated it when Sasuke laughed, hated it the way he hated everything else, because when the dark haired boy showed such delight, it meant that he had things planned for him, things he knew he didn't want to be a part of but had no choice.

He sat up, his whole body burning, like his very veins were on fire, and he groaned as he slowly got to his feet, pulling on a sweater. Despite his pain and misery, he knew that things had to be clean- couldn't leave the house until things were done the way they should be, and so he limped down the stairs and into the kitchen, which smelled strongly of coffee. Sasuke was sitting at the table, pale face staring at the newspapered window in silent contemplation, a mug sitting comfortably in his left hand. The right side of his face sported bruising from cheek to chin, and there were cuts along his hands, but beyond that, he seemed fine. The table had been replaced by another- most likely a old spare judging by the chipped edges. Moving to the sink, he pulled his cleansers out of the cabinet and got to work, all the while feeling Sasuke's eyes on him.

When he finished his cleaning, which took him even longer due to his aching body and lack of bunshin to help, he took a shower, sluggish mind rolling over what had happened yesterday. _They_, had given him _Their_ chakra- or more like, Kyuubi had, as he understood it. He'd never been given anything from _Them_ before- but he knew that Kyuubi had such chakra, and it was the first time it had rushed through his chakra coils- it had burned...

Naruto put on a fresh sweater and pants, glancing at himself in the mirror before quickly averting his eyes. He didn't like mirrors. He returned to the kitchen and was dismayed to see a bowl of soup at his spot, like it usually was. He really didn't feel like eating something so heavy today, but he knew Sasuke would be adamant that he eat. Sitting down at the table, he slowly slurped the soup, and for the first time, he contemplated the state of his own mind. He had never put much thought into _Them_- _They_ had simply existed from day one. But now, after the incident from yesterday, he was left to wonder, was Kyuubi the only one in his head- or were there truly others residing within his cranium? It had always been 'we' and 'us', but what if it was really just 'I' and 'me?' What if all the other voices were just a figment of his imagination, and only Kyuubi was real? What...what if Kyuubi was _making_ him think there was more inside him than there really was?

Naruto carefully placed the spoon on the table, his hands sporting a fine tremor as he slowly pushed the bowl away from him. He shouldn't be surprised really- its not like he expected anyone to be nice to him or anything, and yet his eyes clouded with tears.

"What is it?" Sasuke's voice startled him, and he looked up to see that his companion was looking about the kitchen from his spot at the table. "Is it my mother? Is she here?" Sasuke's dark eyes turned on him with such intensity that he flinched, wiping his eyes as he sent a nervous glance around the kitchen, shaking his head.

Sasuke slowly put the coffee mug down on the table and leaned back into the chair, his eyes surveying the blond. "Ok, so tell me, are there dead people around here?"

Naruto swallowed nervously. He didn't want to talk of such things, didn't like to share his private piece of hell with Sasuke, but the other boy looked like he would start to threaten if he said nothing, so he nodded minutely, wishing that this would satisfy the Uchiha. But he was sorely mistaken. Instead, Sasuke looked more intrigued as he stood up.

"Okay, show me." He gestured for him to follow as he headed for the door, sporting a slight limp. Naruto sighed and followed the Uchiha outside, smoothing down his hood and squinting into the sunlight. Sasuke stood on the porch, arms crossed, eyes darting around the compound. "Where are they?"

There were several of them out, the woman with the baby, one man hobbling on a porch, and several others, all were staring at them. Naruto pointed in their direction, and Sasuke's eyes zeroed in on them. But his face showed no horror. He turned his head and looked at him, and Naruto blinked back.

"What do they look like?"

Naruto sighed. Clearly Sasuke wasn't going to let this go, and he mourned his weakness in screaming about Sasuke's mother. "The...man on the porch is missing a leg and arm- he is there all the time. The woman is holding her baby," he pointed to the hedge were she sat. "She is crying."

Sasuke stared at the hedge, eyes empty of emotion, then looked back at him. "My mother? She say anything to me?"

Naruto blanched and took a step away from him. "She roars- she roars and weeps."

Sasuke took a step forward, eyes burning. "And my father?"

Naruto shook his head rapidly and averted his eyes, but Sasuke knew him too well.

"You've seen him?" he grabbed Naruto's arm. "Where is he? Which part of the ho-" Sasuke's eyes darkened until they nearly looked black, and he marched into the house, dragging Naruto along with him, heading towards _that_ room- the room he never entered. Terror grew in him- he did not want to see that man again, and he latched his arm onto a doorway, jerking Sasuke and his arm to a stop. Sasuke turned to him, eyes seeming on fire, and he bodily yanked Naruto from the doorway and pushed him toward the room.

"No Sasuke!" he cried, trying to dart away from the Uchiha, but Sasuke threw him back toward the door.

"When were you going to tell me that you see my family, huh?!" Sasuke looked downright murderous. He grabbed Naruto's arm with a bruising grip as his other hand began to slide open the door. "Sometimes Naruto," he hissed, lips pulled back with a snarl. "Sometimes you remind me of _him_." The door slammed opened, and the musty smell of an unused room assaulted their noses. Sasuke pulled him into the room, and they stood before the blood stain smeared across the floor, and Naruto stared in dread at the man sitting there, dark, cold eyes focused on Sasuke. "Is he in here, Naruto? Do you see him?" Sasuke's voice had a breathy quality to it, but it was nothing compared to Naruto, who was trying hard not to hyperventilate. "Tell me the truth, Naruto." Sasuke shook him by the arm. "Is he here?"

Naruto nodded, eyes moving toward the man, and Sasuke followed his line of vision.

"Father?"

The man blinked once, a slow blink, and his eyes seemed almost colder than before.

"You were always a disappointment, boy." His tone was laced with disdain, purple and brown puffs escaping with his words, and Naruto felt a wave of nausea run through him.

"Did he say something?" Sasuke demanded eagerly, and Naruto nodded. "What did he say?"

"H-he said he's counting on you to avenge the clan," Naruto looked directly at Sasuke, swallowing thickly. "He said you're the last member, and that you have a duty." He could see that Sasuke was eating up his words like a starving man, and his arm was going numb from his grip. "Can we go now please? This is a bad place, let's just go-we have missions to do."

Sasuke turned to the man, his eyes looking through him, and bowed respectively. "Of course father. I will not rest until Itachi is dead."

The man's lip curled in disgust, and his eyes turned on Naruto. "You're a filthy creature, demon. You weave your lies like a master, and no doubt you have this fool wrapped around your clawed fingers. Take him from my sight."

"He looks satisfied," Naruto breathed quickly, trying to pull himself from the room- Sasuke was still bowing. "Sasuke, lets go!"

Sasuke straightened from his bow and proceeded to leave, releasing him, and as Naruto jumped from the room, was horrified when he came face to chest with Sasuke's mother. Her dark eyes were wide and swollen with tears, and as her mouth opened, that black cavern, Naruto gave a shriek and dashed around her and out of the house, heart pounding in his ears, breath coming wild. He stood on the road, breathing hard as the Uchiha that milled about turned and stared at him.

And for quite some time, he hated Sasuke.

--------------

Kakashi leaned against the railing of the bridge, book open as he surveyed the area. It had been a while since Sasuke and Naruto had been late, and he wondered what could be keeping them. He glanced at Sakura, who was combing her fingers through her hair, but staring down at the cobbled ground with a pensive look on her face.

He shut the book and stuffed it in his back pocket just as he sighted the boys approaching. "What is it, Sakura? Something bothering you?"

Sakura glanced up at him, her green eyes wary, but she shrugged. "It's nothing. I'm just tired of doing D..." he voice trailed off as her eyes fell on the approaching boys, and her face blanched, causing Kakashi to turn and look at them. He raised his brows in alarmed surprise.

Sasuke, was sporting a slightly swollen bruise on the right side of his face, his eyes were shadowed as if he hadn't slept, and he was walking with a clear limp. But it was Naruto that was most alarming. The boy's skin was almost ghostly white, which made the deep angry bruising coloring his mouth and cheeks to look extra ugly. The closer he got, the nastier it looked, until he was close enough that Kakashi realized that it wasn't just regular bruising, but there was actually bleeding beneath his skin, coloring his lips, part of of his chin, and most of his cheeks, red and purple. He too was limping, in a frail, almost weak way, and the expression on his face- he looked like he was about to be ill.

Both boys stopped before them, and Naruto's hand lifted and smoothed down his hood, and he caught a glimpse of Naruto fingers- and they too sported the bruising.

"What happened?" Sakura sounded aghast, her eyes darting between both boys like they had grown extra heads. Naruto only sniffed in reply, and Sasuke looked embarrassed.

"Training went a little too far," he shrugged, and looked over into the river, purposely avoiding their gazes. Kakashi looked at Naruto, who was staring sickly at the ground. He looked back at Sasuke suspiciously- he didn't know what kind of training they were doing, but if this was the result, apparently they needed supervision. But he didn't believe that these were training wounds- this was something else, and it was clear that whatever had gone on between the two of them, Naruto had come out the worst of it.

"You guys are going to have to be more careful, or you won't be in any condition to do missions," he admonished, but he knew he would be keeping a closer eye on the two from now on.

They headed to the Tower, and both boys garnered alarmed looks from people passing by, and he noticed that Sakura walked closer to him than the boys, shooting them wary, contemplative looks. Ninja stared as they headed to receive a mission from the Hokage, and both he and Umino-san looked rather stunned by the boys' appearance. For a moment there was an awkward silence, and then Umino-san sputtered, "N-Naruto! What happened to your face?"

Naruto, who had been staring at the floor, darted his eyes up at the man, then down at the floor. "Training," he muttered, and his voice was barely a rasp, broken and barely completing the word, and Kakashi knew voices that sounded like that. Victims of torture, people who had screamed until their vocal cords gave out and their throats bled. His eyes narrowed, along with Umino-sans and the Hokage's. Their eyes darted to Sasuke, who scowled.

"He screwed up with the Kage Bunshin is all," he snapped, and at this Naruto nodded. Sandaime raised his brows in surprise.

"Who taught him that?" he looked at Kakashi as he waved his hand lazily, then scratched his ear.

"It's really been useful to him," he said, but frowned at the boys, "though I don't know what he could have done to harm himself that bad." his frown let Sasuke know that he didn't entirely believe his words. From his side, Sakura watched them all with wide green eyes, taking everyone's reaction in.

"I see," and the Hokage seemed to understand his meaning. He sifted through the stacks of paper, pulling out a mission.

"We're tired of doing D missions," Sasuke blurted out suddenly, his eyes moving to Sakura, who nodded quickly and turned beseeching eyes on the Hokage. "Can't we get a higher mission?"

Sandaime puffed on his pipe, eyes surveying the Team, then glancing at Kakashi, who shrugged. "Alright, I suppose I may have one for you," he sorted through the papers and pulled one out. "An escort mission to Wave Country," he handed the scroll to Kakashi, who opened it and looked it over. "You're to escort a bridge builder back home, and keep him safe from possible threats such a bandits." He leaned over and requested that Umino-san bring the man.

Moments later, an elderly man about sixty-ish entered, reeking of alcohol and dirt. He scratched his scraggly goatee and stared at his Team.

"Are you serious?" his voice grumbled. "_They're_ going to protect me?" He looked at the Hokage incredulously as the man nodded. "These are babies! And one of them looks like he needs to be hospitalized! They can't protect me!" Both Sasuke and Sakura glared at him- Naruto was playing deaf and continued to stared at the floor.

"They're a very good Team," Kakashi assured the man, "And I'll also be protecting you. You have nothing to fear."

The man looked at him suspiciously before sighing. "Alright- but I'm leaving in two hours!" He stalked toward the door. "Meet me at the west gate." Kakashi nodded and turned to his Team as the man exited.

"Go home and pack up- it's going to take us some time to get to Wave, especially at that man's pace. Bring what you will."

Both nodded, and quickly exited the room, Naruto following after at a sluggish, clearly reluctant pace.

They watched as he disappeared out of the room before turning to each other.

"Do you believe him?" the Hokage asked, eyes stern. Kakashi sighed and scratched his scalp.

"Yes...and no." he looked at Umino-san, whose eyes were trained on the doorway. "What do you think Umino-san?"

The man looked at him and sighed. "Sasuke really looked out for Naruto back in the Academy, and I've seen Naruto inflict harm upon himself, twice. But I'm going to have to agree with you, I believe Sasuke, but only to a certain extent. I don't think its safe for them to be alone together."

"You said there was a regression in Sasuke after he had taken up with Naruto," Kakashi prompted, and the chuunin nodded.

"I was worried from the get-go about Sasuke once he returned to the Academy after the Massacre, but...being with Naruto," Umino frowned and shook his head. "It's strange- and I can't quite explain it, but it seemed as if everyone stopped existing for the boy. Like I wrote in my assessment, they both seemed to exist in their own world." His eyes had a distant cast to them, as if he were remembering their time at the Academy. "I swear, sometimes when he looked at me when I spoke to him, it was like I wasn't really there to him...there was always a delay before he would respond." he sighed. "And Naruto never spoke or looked at me at all." He shrugged and looked at the Hokage, who had leaned back in his chair, smoking his pipe and looking very thoughtful. Umino looked back at him. "How was their interaction with Yoshina?"

Kakashi sighed. "They...tolerated her. They weren't rude, and they didn't exclude her, but then, you stuck three very antisocial kids together. Not much happened."

"And Sakura?"

"Sakura's very social, and its clear she's getting on their nerves some, but its working out better than I thought. This mission may do some good- or it may not."

The Hokage sighed. "Have I made a mistake? Or perhaps this is the lesser of two bad outcomes..?"

----

They returned to the compound, Sasuke looking eager and excited as he entered the house and headed for the room, pulling out their packs and stuffing a change of clothing, a first aid kit, and then headed down into the kitchen for food. Naruto slowly filled his pack, putting in clothing and wipes, because he knew he wouldn't be taking a shower anytime soon- the mere thought of walking around for days and being dirty made him nauseous. When he went downstairs, Sasuke had the kunai and shuriken laid out across the table, and he gestured for Naruto to take some.

They geared up, and he was relieved to see that Sasuke had packed his candy bars for him- the idea of eating anything else was making him break into a sweat. As they were strapping the katana to their backs, Sasuke's head suddenly snapped up, and his eyes took on that intense look again. "Who taught you how to use the katana?"

Naruto rubbed his eyes as a headache bloomed. "Nabeshin."

Sasuke's eyes deepened as he seemed to try to remember who Nabeshin was, but apparently failing to, judging by the look of frustration on his face. "Show me where he is." They finished up, locked the house, and Sasuke followed him as he went to the building Nabeshin tended to wander about. The ghost was not there, however, and he simply stood there, staring emptily at the building. Sasuke frowned. "Is he here?"

Naruto shook his head. Sasuke stared at the building for a moment, then spoke. "This used to be the infirmary, for when we got sick, or injured, and didn't want to go to the village hospital." A look of wariness passed over his face. "I never liked this place." Naruto made no reply, settling for staring at the building and wondering when they would be leaving.

Of course, that was when the gravity of what they were about to embark on hit him. They were leaving the village! His face paled. He had never imagined leaving these walls, never dreamt of a place outside of his apartment, and never cared to for that matter, so the very thought- the idea, that they would be going out into a world without walls, suddenly terrified him.

"I'm sorry," Sasuke's hushed voice jolted him from his fears, and he looked at the dark haired boy, who was staring at the building, his hands stuffed in his pockets. The Uchiha darted a glance at him from the corner of his eyes, then quickly looked away. "I'm sorry...about shoving you and stuff..." his face flushed slightly in embarrassment. "I was just...mad." He looked at him then, and Naruto stared back at him, his face empty of his thoughts. Sasuke shrugged and moved away from the building. "Come on, let's go."

Naruto followed him through the village, breaking out into a sweat, eyes moving to all the people that passed them by, the walls looming closer and closer. He really didn't want to leave, and yet, _They_ began to stir, he could feel _Their_ excitement, like acid running through his veins. _They_ were eager to leave, to be free of Konoha.

They arrived at the gates, where a trickle of people wandered in and out, showing passes and goods before entering or exiting. Sakura was standing next to the old man, a slight grimace on her face, a pack on her back and several kunai strapped to her legs. She smiled at them when they approached, but the smile didn't have that vapid infatuation he was used to seeing when it was directed Sasuke's way. It was more reserved now, definitely more wary.

The man, Tazuna, scowled at him. "What happened to your face?"

"None of your business," Sasuke snapped, and the man turned a glare on him.

"I wasn't talking to you," he growled.

Sasuke's lip curled up in disdain, much like his father's, Naruto thought. "When you have something to say to him, you speak to me. Don't talk to him." Both Sakura and the man looked incredulous at the Uchiha's words.

Tazuna turned to him. "That the way you like things, little boy?"

Naruto smoothed his hood down and stared at the looming walls. Actually, that _was_ the way he liked things- he much preferred not to speak to people at all, and if Sasuke was willing to do all the talking for him, then for once, things were actually going his way.

The man glared at Sasuke for a while before growling, "Where's that jounin of yours?"

Sakura looked up at him. "He's usually late, though I didn't think he would be late for this."

They lapsed into silence for thirty more minutes before Kakashi-sensei showed up, moving at a sedate pace and reading that orange book. His eye surveyed them and he gave a cheerful smile.

"We're all here? Yes?" he handed the mission scroll to the chuunin guarding the gate, who looked it over, made a copy, then handed it back with a few words of good luck. "Okay then, let's go."

One by one they followed the jounin out of the gates, and out of the village, Kakashi-sensei at the fore, Sakura and Tazuna in the middle, and Sasuke and Naruto at the back. They were less than half a mile from the walls when _They_ stirred, unfurled within his mind like a beast.

_**AT LASSST**_, _They_ breathed, and a wave of pure ecstasy rushed through him, all his aches and pains vanished, the air suddenly burst with flavors and scents, and his knees went weak. He felt someone grab his arm, and he realized he was bent over, staring at the ground.

"Not now, not now," someone was whispering in his left ear, and his swimming eyes looked up to see Sasuke at his side, gripping his arm and holding him from collapsing to the ground. Ahead, he could see that the others were still walking, not noticing what was happening behind them. Naruto straightened his legs, and took a few steps forward, the sensation fading. "Why are you smiling?" Sasuke's question startled him completely, and he realized that his face was split into a smile- how strange, and as he noticed this, his muscles released, and the smile was gone. Sasuke still had him by the arm as they quickened their pace to catch up to the others, and his face was twisted in a concerned frown. Only moments later, did he release his grip on him, instead dropping his hand down to rest on his katana, which rested at their hips instead of on their backs because of the traveling packs.

"If an enemy comes, aim to kill," he murmured, looking Naruto in the eye. "Don't even think about incapacitation because I doubt they'll show you the same courtesy," he sent him a knowing look, and Naruto's eyes widened. "We won't give them a chance. Right?"

Naruto's eyes fluttered as _They_ murmured _Their_ agreement, and he smoothed down his hood while nodding.

"Right."

**TBC**

**Not much from Sakura in this chapter- which is absolutely fine with me. I'm not sure what Fugaku's relationship with Sasuke was, but in here, he's a jerk. Naruto has started to contemplate **_**They, **_**and**__**what**_** They **_**are**_**- **_**or more like who, for that matter.**


	11. Chapter 11

Disclaimer: Naruto does not belong to Kirsdarkenvar

**This whole chapter is _all_ of Wave, because one reviewer(Guilty Simpson) so kindly suggested this, and it was too good an idea to pass up. Admittedly, since I know everyone who is reading this now has assuredly read the events of Wave, I feel there is no need to be too detailed on minor stuff _unless_ it differs from canon. Enjoy.**

**Chapter Eleven**

He had bumped into Sasuke again, for the fourth time, something he couldn't help, being that it was his first time outside of the village, and he was as twitchy as a squirrel. Both his and Sasuke's hands were resting on their katana, ever alert for some kind of attack that was sure to come, while Sakura tried to conduct a conversation with the outsider man, Tazuna. Every once in a while she would glance back at them, and he wasn't sure if it was to reassure herself that they were still there, or her way of keeping an eye on them. She definitely looked wary enough, something that alarmed him deeply. Did she have some type of plan- what was behind all of the speculative glances she turned their way?

Kakashi-sensei began to linger back, until he was near them, his lazy eye taking every thing in, and that was when Naruto noticed a puddle on the ground, not at all significant by his standards, but _They_ surged forward in his mind to the fore, until _They_ were looking out at the puddle, and he could see two ninjas hidden within.

Naruto blinked rapidly, his eyes feeling like they were about to pop from the force of _Them, _opened his mouth to speak, but the two hidden ninja exploded into action. Chains flew from the puddle, wrapping around their startled sensei as the two ninja emerged from the puddle.

"One down," one of the half-masked men hissed as both pulled on the chains in opposite directions, ripping Kakashi-sensei to shreds. _They_ cackled in his mind as the two ninja leaped down behind him.

"Two-" the ninja swung their chains, but Naruto ducked, pulling out his katana and swinging it toward one's legs. The ninja jumped over the blade and aimed a kick for his head, forcing Naruto to roll away quickly to avoid his foot. At the same time Sasuke tossed a kunai, catching one of the nin's chains against a tree, then leaped forward as the other abandoned Naruto and raced toward the horrified Sakura and Tazuna, who seemed frozen the moment Kakashi-sensei had been torn apart.

Such a sensation was rushing through Naruto's veins, something he had never felt before, and likely would never understand. Everything seemed so vivid, clear- minute little details were somehow apparent, such as the small scratches and chips along the enemy nin's mask, or how the light glinted off of his katana as he swung it at the mans head. This was all so similar to training with Sasuke, dodging, striking, parrying- except the enemy had a very nubile chain instead of the straight and sturdy katana. The nin managed to wrap the chain around his katana and yanked it from his hands, flinging it far from the battle.

Naruto leaped back as the man swung the clawed chain, felt the pain as it pierced his hand, but he felt no fear. Had _They_ taken it all away? Even now, he could feel _Them_ watching him, a low din of noise in the back of his mind. Out of the corner of his eye he could see that Kakashi-sensei had reappeared, knocking down the other nin that Sasuke had been fighting, and his roommate turned to him and tossed a kunai.

The enemy nin dodged the kunai, swinging his chain at Naruto's head, but he twisted about, snatching the kunai out of the air as it passed and swinging it at the nin's throat at he finished the spin. He felt the kunai cut into the man's throat, passing through the fabric that covered his neck, and slicing into the flesh. The man gave a choking gurgle, eyes wide in surprise as blood squirted from his jugular all over Naruto's face. The ninja dropped to the ground, grabbing his throat, twitching several times before becoming still, but Naruto's focus was on something else- or more like nothing at all, as ecstasy ran through him, and once again all the colors seemed to blur together. He could feel the muscle loosen in his body, his headache vanished, and _They_ murmured gently through his head, _Their_ pleasure his, and for once, _They_ did not laugh at him, or hurt him. _They_ were completely _satisfied_.

-------

"Son of a _bitch_," The enemy ninja tried to surge to his feet as the other fell to the ground, his blood spurting all over the dirt, but Kakashi-sensei punched the man in the stomach roughly, and he slumped to the ground, momentarily unconscious. Behind him, he could hear Sakura's ragged breaths, and he briefly wondered what she was getting all worked up about- it wasn't like she had contributed to the fight. No, Sasuke had to abandon Naruto to go to her rescue- because he truly doubted she knew anything beyond kunai tossing and the very basics of taijutsu- hair pulling didn't count. And there was a moment of his own to be ashamed of, for when the enemy nins had first attacked, he hadn't been able to move, he had been frozen by the sight of Kakashi-sensei's body being torn apart. Apparently, Naruto didn't have that problem, and had burst into action the moment those two nin had approached him. It had taken Sasuke several precious seconds to get his bearings and come to his companion's aid. It was shameful- very shameful- and he was grateful his father wasn't here to witness his momentary weakness.

Sasuke rushed over to Naruto, who was standing near the body, and he was sure his roommate was probably in shock, having killed someone for the first time- and he almost felt envious of him, having passed that hurdle. He stopped at his side, eyeing the dead ninja- his eyes were still open- looked over at Naruto, and felt an instant chill run though him. There was blood on his companions face, which wasn't anything new beyond the fact that for once it wasn't his own, but it was his expression that chilled him. Naruto was staring off into the the trees, eyes lazy, looking quite sated, and his lips were turned up in a happy smile. It was the second time in two hours he had seen that smile, and it disturbed him, especially at this moment, for though it was a pleasant smile, the look in Naruto's lazy eyes was not particularly friendly as it was bloodthirsty, murderous, or maliciously delighted.

"Hey," he nudged Naruto's shoulder as Kakashi-sensei approached, and Sasuke knew he didn't want the man to see Naruto like this. "Hey! Snap out of it!" he hissed in his ear, and pinched his arm, which caused the look of happiness to fade immediately, and Naruto to turn accusing eyes on him. That was more like it.

Kakashi-sensei knelt down by the dead ninja and turned his body so that he could see the killing wound, and the hitai-ate strapped to his shoulder. "Shinobi from the Mist," he muttered, eye serious as he glanced up at Naruto, who was staring edgily at Tazuna, who had approached along with Sakura and was much too close to him. Naruto promptly moved to his other side, so that Sasuke was between him and Tazuna. Kakashi-sensei turned his eye from Naruto and frowned at the old man as he straightened up. "I was under the impression that this was a simple escort mission, with the possibility of bandits or gangs. But two missing nin from Hidden Mist? We have to have a talk, Tazuna-san. This C-rank mission just moved up to at least B-rank."

As the old man averted his eyes guiltily, Sakura sputtered, "B-rank?! We can't do that! We're not qualified! We-"

Sasuke turned a cold gaze on her- effectively shutting her up, and Kakashi-sensei turned to Naruto.

"Naruto, you've got a cut on your hand that we're going to have to take care of," Naruto, who had been staring at the dirt, lifted his hand, and Sasuke could see angry slashes across the back of his right hand. Sakura gave a slight hiss at the sight of it, but Naruto seemed to lose interest after it was brought to his attention, and his hand flopped back down, a trickle of blood falling from it and into the dirt. Kakashi-sensei shook his head. "It may look like nothing, but the claws of these two men are poisonous- we have to induce bleeding to drain out the poison."

Sasuke looked at Naruto in alarm as the Kakashi-sensei approached, which did not seem to please the blond, who backed away, smoothing his hood down. With the bruising and the blood, he looked even worse now than before. Naruto moved away from them, pulling out a kunai and digging it into the wound, making them all grimace, though his facial expression was set on resigned.

Kakashi-sensei sighed and handed Sasuke bandages from his first aid kit, and Sasuke headed over to the blond, grabbing his wrist and examining the wound, which looked even worse now than before. He wrapped it up, glancing up at Naruto's face every once in while, gauging his expression, which still seemed stuck on resigned and miserable.

"Good job," he muttered lowly, so that the others would not hear him, and Naruto's eyes fluttered in response. When Naruto's hand was all but mummified, they returned to the others; Kakashi-sensei was in the process of tying the surviving missing-nin up and Sakura had retrieved Naruto's blade, smartly handing it to him instead of the blond.

"Thanks for coming to our rescue," Sakura blushed as he handed the blade over to Naruto. Sasuke scowled and looked back at her.

"I hope to not have to do that often."

Sakura's eyes filled with tears as she looked down at the dirt, much like Naruto was doing at the moment, and he noticed that Tazuna was frowning at him, but not with the usual force that he had earlier. The elderly man was looking quite grim.

They moved along for another few hours, surrounding Tazuna and keeping sharp eyes out for another attack. Sakura seemed to have fallen into a dark mood, Kakashi-sensei was more pensive than usual, and Naruto...seemed to be in the midst of one of his headaches again. Sasuke moved closer to the blond, which wasn't much since Naruto was already walking close enough.

"Did you see him?" he whispered, glancing at the others to make sure they hadn't heard as Naruto lifted watery, pain-filled eyes to him in question. "The man you killed. Did you see his ghost?" Naruto glanced behind them in alarm but shook his head. "No ghost?" Naruto shook his head again, rubbing above his brow in pain. Interesting. What made a person a ghost? Under what circumstances caused them to become that way?

They came to a river not too much later, where a man waited uneasily for them on a poorly made dock, his weathered face tight with anxiety. They all boarded the boat quietly, the ferryman admonishing them to be as quiet as possible. Of course, it was then that Tazuna felt it appropriate to tell of why he had lied to them about the mission rank. The cause of the lie was unfortunate, and they all felt bad for the small island country, except maybe for Naruto, who spent the whole trip staring down into the water, eyes blurred with pain, and probably not having heard a word the bridge builder had said. He knew that the blond often suffered from intense headaches, yet he hadn't thought it would be much of a problem on this mission- but if they got into any more battles with Naruto like this...

Or maybe the poison had affected him faster than they had surmised? He eyed Naruto's bandaged hand, and thought that maybe he should check it for unnatural swelling. Would the injured hand hinder him from doing jutsu properly? He wondered if Naruto was capable of doing any jutsu at all, especially after the Kyuubi's chakra running through his system so violently. They should have checked before they had departed.

He nudged his roommate and leaned close to his hooded ear. "Do you think you could perform any jutsu during this mission?"

At first it seemed like Naruto hadn't heard him, but then he nodded slowly as if trying to limit the movement of his head, his eyes shut tightly. Sasuke took his bandaged hand and unwrapped it carefully, Naruto giving no indication that he noticed. He eyed the wound, and Kakashi-sensei leaned back to peer at the hand, his eye narrowing at the sight. Sasuke moved the hand from his view, watching the jounin's expression from the corner of his eye as he re-wrapped Naruto's hand. The wound was already half-healed, no doubt due to the fox, and he hadn't wanted Kakashi-sensei to see that. But it was too late, judging by the speculative look in the jounin's eye.

The boat moved silently along the river, passing through a tunnel and out into a rather nice shore, exposing the forest that rested along the it.

"Welcome to Wave," the bridge builder breathed, and there was sad adoration in his eyes, and even Naruto looked up to blink at his surroundings, his nose crinkling in distaste at the smell of seawater. Tazuna thanked the ferryman as they docked, and quickly headed along the dirt path, closer to their destination. While they had been on the boat, they had seen the large, almost finished bridge that Tazuna was risking all on, and Sasuke had to admit it was pretty impressive.

They headed down a slightly forested path, on one side trees, the other the grey ocean, with its constant chatter from gulls and the rush of waves breaking against the shore. Naruto bumped into him again, and he looked to see that the blond seemed barely lucid, and as he opened his mouth to hiss at him, he saw a flash of white in the bushes on Naruto's right. He tossed a kunai quickly, startling Sakura and Tazuna, and attracting Kakashi-sensei's attention.

"Did you see something, Sasuke-kun?" Sakura asked nervously, pulling out her own kunai. Sasuke moved toward the bush, peering over it to spot a frightened white rabbit. "Aww," Sakura gushed, picking it up and running a hand through its thick fur. "It's just a rabbit."

"Wrong color...for weather..." he turned to see Naruto squinting painfully at the rabbit, apparently having a hard time forming words, but he didn't miss the narrow- eyed look Kakashi-sensei was giving the rabbit and the surrounding area.

There was a whooshing sound, and Kakashi-sensei shouting for them to duck, and he grabbed Tazuna and dropped to the dirt, feeling a gust of wind rush over them accompanied by a loud solid 'thunk'. Beside him, Naruto was looking much more lucid now, and frightened too. Sasuke looked up from the dirt and spotted a rather large zanbatou embedded into a tree, and standing on it was a shirtless man in striped pants, and bandages wrapped around the lower half of his face. Kakashi-sensei was already on his feet, staring up at the ninja.

"If it isn't Momochi Zabuza, Hidden Mist's missing nin," he drawled as Sasuke got to his feet, the others following along. He pulled out his katana, but paused when Kakashi-sensei held up a hand. "No, stay out of this fight. He's too much for you."

"You're Sharingan Kakashi, yes? Sorry, but the old man is mine." The man's voice was a deep baritone, not that Sasuke cared much, especially as his words sank into his mind. Sharingan? His eyes zeroed in on the back of his sensei's head. Kakashi-sensei had the Sharingan? Impossible, no one outside of the Uchiha clan had that technique- it was passed through the blood and the only way he could have it was if he was a blood relative! Was he?

"What's the Sharingan?" Sakura whispered, her voice trembling slightly. The man looked at her.

"It's said that it gives one the ability to defeat any ninjutsu, taijutsu, or genjutsu- and the ability to copy any technique used against him. In the bingo book its said that you've copied a thousand techniques, eh Copy ninja Kakashi?" The man looked delighted.

Kakashi-sensei lifted the hitai-ate that sat over his left eye, and to Sasuke's shock, it revealed the bloody Sharingan, that was it- clearly, with three pin-wheels.

"You guys stay back and guard Tazuna-san," he ordered, and this was the first time they had heard him sound so serious. Naruto moved reluctantly closer to Tazuna, pulling out his katana, face pained and grim. Sasuke reluctantly backed up in front of the old man as well, wishing he could just fight Momochi Zabuza instead of standing by and watch. He also wanted to ask how the jounin had come about possessing the Sharingan.

The missing-nin darted from the tree, pulling the zanbatou with him and dropped down into the water, reappearing to stand on top of it.

"Ninpou: Mizu no jutsu," and immediately a mist rolled over them, engulfing the missing-nin completely and converging upon them.

"He's gone!" Sakura gasped.

"Calm down," was Kakashi-sensei's assuring reply. "He'll come after me first," but even as he said this, a wave of pure killing intent rushed through them, like none Sasuke ever felt before, and he was sure in the next few moments he would be dead. He was no match for this ninja, not he, not Naruto, and he managed to glance at his blond companion, whose face was twisted in fear and resignation as the mist nin began to list ways to kill them. "Don't worry, Sasuke," Kakashi-sensei's voice cut through the terror, "I'll protect you guys even if it kills me," and the jounin sent him a cheerful look.

Even as he spoke, Zabuza's presence appeared behind them. Immediately Naruto jumped forward, out of the way, but it was Kakashi-sensei that saved the rest of them, shoving them forward while stabbing the missing-nin in the stomach with a kunai. For a second the man froze, then burst into water, at the same time appearing behind the jounin, swinging his zanbatou and cutting the jounin in half. But he too burst into water, and Sasuke knew that Kakashi-sensei had copied the mizu bunshin technique that quickly. Kakashi appeared behind him, kunai to his neck.

"You copied my bunshin, using it to distract me with those pathetic words while you hid out in my mist, watching me," the missing nin chuckled. "Impressive." Suddenly a second Zabuza appeared behind Kakashi. "But I'm not that easy."

"We have to help him!" Sakura gasped, green eyes wide with fear, looking over at them. Sasuke agreed, they should help, but he knew they would only get in the way. Rage passed through him. He was still so weak!

"Kage bunshin no jutsu," Naruto rasped beside him, and he turned to see a bunshin pop up next to Naruto. The blond and the bunshin stared at one another for a moment, then the clone nodded and headed for the shore, slipping into the water quietly under the ring of metal against metal. He sent the blond a questioning look.

"He's a mist nin," Naruto rasped. "He'll stay near the water."

Sasuke nodded. Every so often, he forgot that Naruto was actually _smart_. Just as he finished thinking this, Kakashi-sensei was knocked into the water, and as he tried to surface, the mist nin popped up behind him, chuckling in delight.

"Suiru no jutsu," at his words a bubble of water formed around Kakashi-sensei, lifting him into the air a foot above the water. Kakashi-sensei tried hitting the watery bubble, but to no avail, and judging by the missing-nin's cackle, it was useless. "You shouldn't have fallen into the water, Kakashi. You'll never escape this prison, and while I have you, I think I'll finish off your little troop playing ninja."

Fear came over their sensei's face as he shouted for them to leave. "Get out of here! None of you are a match for him. Escape!" As he shouted a bunshin formed itself from the water, stepping onto land. "Get out of here!" Kakashi shouted. "He has to stay with me to keep me imprisoned, and his bunshin can't go very far from him. So leave!"

Sweat appeared above Sasuke's brow as he looked at the bunshin, to Zabuza, to Kakashi, to his teammates. Sakura was trembling, Tazuna's face was twisted in a grimace, and Naruto's weary eyes were on him, waiting for him to tell them what to do. Like hell he was going to run like a dog with his tail between his legs.

He gripped his katana, and that seemed to affirm to Naruto that they indeed intended to stay and fight, whether it killed them or not. "Guard Tazuna," he ordered to Sakura, who nodded sharply and stood in front of the man just as the bunshin darted forward, kicking Naruto in the chest. The blond managed to bring up the flat of his blade to take the blunt of the force, knocking him back a few feet, and Sasuke swung his blade at the bunshin's head. The bunshin dropped down, avoiding the swipe and coming up with a punch to his abdomen. Sasuke grunted, glared at the water bunshin as Naruto approached with two other clones, and thats when he remembered the one that had disappeared into the water.

"Hey," he gestured his head toward the water, and Naruto turned his head and gazed momentarily at the ocean before he and his clones attacked the bunshin. All were knocked away, though the mizu bunshin had to actually do some work, and as Naruto was pushed back, Sasuke gathered his chakra. "Katon: Gokakyu no Jutsu!"

As the fire engulfed the startled bunshin, the kage bunshin that hid in the water chose that moment to leap out at Zabuza, kunai taking a swipe at the man's arm. The mist nin's eyes widened as he was forced to jerk out of the way, his arm that was buried in the bubble was pulled out, and with a splash, Kakashi-sensei was released.

"Damn brats!" Zabuza snarled, turning to Kakashi-sensei, and immediately their hands began to form identical signs, and shouting, "Suiton: Suiryudan no jutsu!"

Sasuke watched in awe as twin dragons made of water rose behind the two ninja and violently crashed into one another with a loud crack. Sasuke's awe turned into alarm as a torrent of water rushed toward them, knocking him back. He rolled with the water, allowing himself to be moved until he grabbed onto a tree and pulled himself up. From where he was, he could not hear what they were saying, but every time the missing nin made a move, Kakashi-sensei copied it, until the jounin appeared behind the mist nin and blasted him with a huge torrent of water, knocking them all back again. Sasuke grabbed onto the tree tightly, muscles straining against the angrier flow of water, until it settled, and he could look up again.

The scene that greeted him was even more startling. Kakashi-sensei had Zabuza up against a tree, ready to land a killing blow, he imagined, when two senbon needles pierced through the missing- nins neck, killing him.

The man dropped limply to the ground as Sasuke approached, and a young muffled voice called his attention to the tree, where a masked ...kid kneeled.

"You are right, he is dead." the kid dropped down next to the dead missing-nin, looking over the body. "I must thank you," the youthful voice said. "I've been waiting for a chance to kill this man."

"You a hunter-nin from Hidden Mist?" Kakashi-sensei asked, and the kid nodded.

"Yes. Finally, my village can clean up this mess." He tossed the man over his small shoulders. "Thank you." He and the body disappeared in swirl of mist.

"What just happened?" Sakura's voice broke the momentary silence, and Sasuke looked around to the see the soaked kunoichi approach with the bridge builder. That's when he remembered his blond companion, and his eyes darted around for him, finally landing on him quite a distance away, simply standing there, hair plastered to his bruised face, looking water-logged and miserable. He had two katana in his hands, and Sasuke realized he must have dropped his own when the first blast of water hit them. He gestured for his companion to approach- really he didn't know why Naruto was standing all the way over there in the first place, and the blond reluctantly limped over to where they were. "Wasn't that kid our age? How could he kill that man so easily?!" Sakura sputtered incredulously.

Kakashi-sensei looked down at her. "In this world, there are kids younger than you that are stronger than me." Sakura gasped, and Sasuke's eyes narrowed. Yes, that was true. Itachi had made anbu captain by thirteen, and he...he knew he would not be able to say the same for himself. Sasuke's fists clenched in silent fury, missing the empty look Naruto sent his way. "We should be getting Tazuna-san home now," Kakashi-sensei suggested as he pulled his hitai-ate down over the eye that carried the Sharingan.

"Yes!" Tazuna dropped his sun hat over his wet gray hair. "You can all come to my place and rel-"

They all watched as Kakashi-sensei dropped down flat into the mud.

"Kakashi-sensei!" Sakura screeched, making Naruto jump and look at her in alarm as she rushed to her sensei's side, turning the groaning man over. "Are you hurt badly?" She asked, voice heavy with concern. Sasuke moved to kneel down and examine him, but there were no serious wounds on the jounin beyond a simple cut on his arm. He gestured for Naruto to come over and have a look. Though he wasn't sure why, it wasn't like Naruto was a medic nin or anything- but Naruto knew a lot of seemingly random important facts.

The blond pulled his soaked hood over the his wet locks, shaking from the cold, and blinked miserably down at their sensei's body. Then he spoke. "Does the Sharingan take chakra to work?"

Sasuke's brows rose, and he nodded.

"Must have used too much chakra then," His arms wrapped around his body and he turned and moved away slowly. "He'll recover...in a week or so..." his voice drifted back to them as he moved along their intended path.

"Is he kidding?" Sakura stared incredulously after the blond, and Sasuke sighed.

"Let's get him up." He gripped his sensei by the armpits and Sakura took his legs. "You're place better not be far," Sasuke sent Tazuna a glare, and the man simply grinned in reply.

------------------------

The home in which belonged to Tazuna was over water, on stilts, and the mere sight of it made Naruto pale in horror. Or perhaps it was the armless man pacing mournfully about the house, his stubs tracking blood along the wooden dock. He had tanned skin and dark hair, with dark eyes swollen with tears. He turned as they approached, and his eyes zeroed in on him, and Naruto looked down at the wooden dock.

The first thing they did was get Kakashi-sensei into the house and down on a futon, where he muttered that he would be fine with a few days rest. Tsunami, Tazuna's ill named daughter, at least he thought so, especially living in a village that stretched along the coast, immediately sat them down to eat, which Sakura, Sasuke, and Tazuna seemed eager to do. He, on the other hand, felt like crawling out of his skin. There was sand in his sandals, salt settling along his flesh, and he was in someone's poorly cleaned house. The very table they sat before had salt stuck within the nooks of it. He needed cleanser-badly.

"Are you alright?" the dark-haired woman asked, and he did not bother looking up at her. "Is he alright?" Her question was directed toward the others.

"He's fine," he heard Sasuke reply, and then she made a inquiry as to why he wasn't eating. He tuned out Sasuke's reply, instead focusing on more serious matters, besides the state of Tazuna's home. Naruto never wanted to be a ninja, never even had much interest in it in general- but Sasuke and the Hokage had forced him along that path, and he mostly blamed Sasuke for this. _They _had never shown interest in the world of shinobi until Sasuke had shown up, and since then, _They_ had pushed him almost as much as Sasuke had.

And it became increasingly clear, that the longer he stayed on this path, the shorter his life was going to be- not that he expected it to be a long one anyway. Deep down, he was a little bit startled that he was still alive. The Demon Brothers were the first real ninja they had come across, and if it weren't for the intervention of _Them_, he knew he would be dead already. He wasn't stupid- he could tell what _They_ were doing. _They_ wanted him to _want_ to kill people, to fall into _Their_ bloodlust. All during the trip _They_ kept coming and going from his eyes, making them hurt and hard to see. _They_ wanted to control him as _They_ have for all of his life, and _They_ had chosen Sasuke as _Their_ tool. Perhaps Sasuke's father was right- perhaps Sasuke _was_ wrapped around his finger, just not _his_ finger.

Sasuke nudged him, and he looked up to see that the table had been cleared, and the others were getting ready to rest for the night. Tsunami had apparently laid out three futons next to Kakashi-sensei's, and Sakura was already laying down next to the jounin. Naruto slowly got to his feet and followed Sasuke towards the futons, but he paused when his eyes fell on the window, where the armless man stood looking in, eyes swollen with tears.

They weren't safe.

His eyes darted to all the windows, which were wide open, a clear ocean breeze running through, unhindered. Naruto's eyes widened, and his heart began to thunder in his ears. He shouldn't be here- this wasn't his place. This wasn't where he belonged. His place had covered windows, not opened ones, his place had protection- his place was _clean, _not contaminated. The man continued to stare at him, his mouth opening and a trickle of blood ran down his chin. Puffs of rust came from his mouth- someone was touching him, and Naruto's eyes darted wildly and connected with Sasuke's dark ones. Sasuke's face had that forced calm he adopted when he was dealing with him, and he gently pulled Naruto to the futon.

The _filthy_ futon.

Naruto shook his head wildly and fled to a corner, the one farthest from the windows, and buried his face in his hands, pulling at his bangs, feeling a headache bloom.

Hours later, someone nudged him, and he moved his hands from his face to see Sasuke crouching before him in the darkness. Behind him, Sakura and Kakashi-sensei slumbered, clearly unaware of the danger they were all in. His eyes darted to the open windows and he bit his tongue sharply as to not make noise.

"Here," Sasuke whispered, and something poked his hand. He looked down to see that it was one of his candy bars, completely normal, and with Sasuke's body shielding him from few, he quickly ate the bar, relieved that no one would see him eat it. When that was done, Sasuke brought over his pack and he pulled out the disinfectant wipes he had stashed at the bottom and wiped as much of himself as he could, and Sasuke did the same. "Is there someone out there?" he asked suddenly, and Naruto's eyes darted to the man at the window. He was still there, still watching him. Naruto shuddered and nodded. Sasuke turned and looked at the window before getting up and closing the shutters, then pulled the curtains together. He cautiously closed and curtained all the windows so that the moonlight was shut out, and finally, Naruto felt a little ease run through him.

Sasuke returned and sat down in front of him, brows pinched together as he frowned down at his pants.

"Kakashi-sensei's last name is Hatake, right?" Naruto nodded. "So how come he has the Sharingan?" Anger was laced in his question, along with confusion and jealousy. "Only the Uchiha possess this bloodline!"

Naruto scratched his scalp- then cringed when he felt salt under his fingers. He felt disgusting. He blinked at the Uchiha miserably, knowing that this was all his fault, and also that Sasuke was apparently not the most observant person around.

"There was a scar on the lids of his eye," Naruto replied, and the Uchiha looked surprised. "it means that his eye has been replaced."

Understanding dawned on Sasuke. "You think he lost his eye and an Uchiha gave one to him?" before he could reply, Sasuke scowled. "What idiot Uchiha would do that? That bloodline is exclusive- he would have gotten in much trouble with the heads of my clan if that was found out. He'd have to have already been dy-" Sasuke cut himself off, instead staring down at the filthy floor.

Naruto went back to wiping himself, and even began to run the wipes through his hair in an attempt to get the salt out.

He silently cursed Sasuke while he did so.

-------

The next day Kakashi-sensei woke to a grim revelation, and he had them gather around to hear it. Zabuza had escaped death, with help from the hunter-nin- who could be either real or fake- though it didn't matter which- it appeared they had less than a week to train and get their bodies in high gear. Sasuke couldn't help but tremble in excitement-he wanted another chance to fight, to prove that he wasn't just some kid playing ninja. Beside him, Sakura looked alarmed and uneasy, and on his other side, Naruto was...staring at the floor, eyes running along the cracks and no doubt lamenting on how dirty the place was.

"What will we doing for training?" Sakura asked

"I have something planned," Kakashi replied with a gleam in his eye.

"Sounds boring," a small voice said behind them, and he turned to see a small dark-haired boy in a hat stare back at them with dark miserable eyes- though he imagined no one could do miserable like Naruto.

"Oh! Hello," Sakura greeted with a puzzled smile, and Tazuna introduced him as Inari- his grandson.

The kid clung to his mother, then said, "They're all going to die."

Sakura frowned as Tazuna sighed. "Inari..."

"What's the point? No one can defeat Gatou, they're just wasting their time." He then turned and went back to wherever the hell he had come from, which was perfectly okay with Sasuke, who didn't want to stay around the little bastard anyway. He glanced to see what Naruto thought of this, but forced down an exasperated sigh when he saw that Naruto hadn't even turned around to see who had addressed them- he was still staring at the ground with the same aggrieved expression on his face.

Yes, no one could do miserable like Naruto.

--------

The next day they stood in the trees, waiting for Kakashi-sensei to arrive, as they usually did, except this time he would have a valid excuse for his lateness. In the meantime, he and Sasuke occupied themselves with their usual warm-up of taijutsu while Sakura did stretches and watched them with silent speculative eyes. He didn't like when she watched them.

There was a rustle of leaves, and they turned to see Kakashi-sensei arrive, one arm occupied with a crutch, but otherwise he seemed okay.

"Alright, so this is where we're going to do some training. But first, I want one of you to tell me what chakra is."

Sakura stepped forward. "Chakra is the energy a ninja needs when performing a jutsu."

"That's correct Sakura," Kakashi nodded. "Can anyone elaborate more?"

Sasuke nudged him, and Naruto grimaced. "Chakra energy has two parts, the body energy that is in each our cells, and spiritual energy gained through training and other experiences. Combining them creates chakra, and by releasing such, one can use a jutsu, which is achieved through the process of performing a seal with the hands. Common seals used are the Rat seal, Ox seal, Tiger seal, hare seal, Dragon seal, Serpent seal, Horse seal, Ram seal, Monkey seal, Bird seal, Dog seal, and the Boar seal. Doing these correctly-"

"Okay Naruto," Sasuke interrupted, and he glanced up to see that the others were staring at him.

"Right..." Kakashi-sensei stared at him more for a second, then smiled. "Ah, Umino-san had some smart students. Now, the most important thing about chakra is that, no matter how much you have, if you don't have proper control over it, any jutsu you create will be weak, or not work at all." Sasuke's brows rose at this. "And by wasting so much energy, you won't last very long in a battle. Not to mention, there may- or most likely _will_, be a time when you'll be fighting _and_ gathering chakra at the same time, which is difficult. So today, we're going to learn better chakra control."

"How?" Sakura asked eagerly.

"Tree climbing."

"What? What kind of training is that?"

"Well, first off, you won't be climbing with your hands," he walked over to a tree, then walked vertically up it, without use of his hand. Sakura gasped in awe as Kakashi-sensei hung upside-down from a branch. "You'll have to direct chakra to your feet to stick to the tree. How will this help you, you ask? Well, by concentrating a small amount to the bottom of your feet, you learn better chakra control. Learn how to do this properly, and you can do just about any jutsu."

_Theoretically_, Naruto thought. Some jutsu were simply beyond regular means, beyond simple control. The jounin walked back down the tree and whipped out his book. "Go ahead and pick a tree. Mark each spot you reach and beat that."

Sasuke and Sakura eagerly pulled out a kunai and ran for a tree. Naruto sighed and walked up to one, concentrating chakra to his feet, took a few steps up before stumbling back down. Next to him, Sasuke dropped down from a considerable height, looking peeved and pleased at the same time. That is, until Sakura exclaimed how easy that was, and they both looked up to see her sitting comfortably in her tree, which was no surprise to him, but was apparently for Sasuke.

"Well well," Kakashi-sensei hummed. "That's quite impressive Sakura. Maybe _you_ should be the number one rookie, hmm?"

Sasuke glared and ran for the tree, while Sakura yelled at the jounin to be quiet. As Naruto approached the tree again, _They _surfaced again from the simple murmur at the back of his mind to right behind his eyes, and he stiffened, feeling his eyes turn to the right, where to his surprise, he spotted the little child Inari behind a tree, watching them. Behind Inari was the armless man, and when their eyes connected, and man made a puffy gasp and fled, disappearing soundlessly into the forest.

"Come on, Naruto," Sasuke urged as he dropped down to the ground again. "You're not even trying. Let's go." Naruto sighed miserably and headed up the tree again, _They_ retreating back to murmurs.

Hours later, they were at the bottom of the trees, sweaty, tired, and he was sure Sasuke and Sakura were hungry. Sasuke had a perpetual scowl on his face, repeatedly glancing up at his marks, unsatisfied, and of course, when he looked at Naruto's which were apparently even less satisfactory, seemed to put him in an even more sour mood.

"I can't believe you guys are still going at it," Sakura panted from her tree, which had all the highest marks. She got up and dusted herself off, looked nervously between the two, then bit her lip as she approached him. Naruto smoothed down his hood and turned to move toward Sasuke.

"Hey Naruto," she reached out to grab his shoulder, but seemed to think better of it and instead brushed her hair out of her face. Naruto looked at her. What did she want? "Um, I...I was just going to say that you should just relax, and um, focus...on the tree. Yeah." Her eyes darted from his and to the ground, then back again, before she turned completely red. "Yeah- well I'm going to go- get something to eat, I mean." she stammered her way away from him, and he watched her go.

Sasuke got up and came to his side. "What did she want?"

Naruto turned to him. "She said to relax and focus on the tree." Sasuke nodded and headed back to the tree. Naruto went to his and tried to relax, but he could not quiet his mind- his mind was never quiet- he couldn't even understand the concept of relaxation and quiet. Instead he focused as little chakra as he could and headed up the tree, actually getting farther than his previous attempts before his chakra stuttered to a halt, and he leaped up and grabbed a branch, swinging himself up and sitting down. His body ached.

Sasuke moved into his tree and handed him a candy bar, and he glanced around for witnesses before he quickly ate it. Sasuke grimaced, then wiped the sweat from his brow.

"Why do you think Sakura could do it so quickly?" he asked, sounding agitated. Naruto folded the wrapper and neatly placed it in his pocket, so he could dispose of it later.

"Because she's female."

"What does that have to do with anything?"

Naruto sighed, feeling a headache bloom. "Kunoichi naturally have less chakra than men, so they have better control, which is why most genjutsu masters are woman. It is also why some of the best medic-nins are woman. Of course, there are exceptions to this rule, as there is to everything. We have more chakra than Sakura, therefore, more to control."

"Where'd you learn that?"

"_Handbook: Everything Ninja_."

Sasuke blinked at him, then jumped down from the tree. "Come on, we have a lot to do," he called up at him, and _They_ murmured their agreement.

While Sakura and Kakashi spent the coming days protecting Tazuna as he built the bridge, he and Sasuke continued to climb the tree, until he never wanted to see another tree again.

That night, as the others sat at the table and ate, and Tsunami silently fretted over why he wasn't eating, Sakura commented on a picture that had a person torn out of it. He thought it was stupid of her to bring up- because he'd seen it days ago, and it was clearly none of their business as to why the person had been removed from the portrait, and judging by Sasuke's glare, he felt the same way. But apparently Sakura lacked tact along with common sense, and they were gifted with the story of Inari's father Kaiza, who upon hearing his name, decided to look in the _open_ windows, making his headache even worse. Why hadn't Tsunami kept the windows drawn and closed? Was she punishing him for not eating her food?

"Please," Kaiza whimpered, puffs of grey smoke coming from his mouth, and _They _became louder. Naruto dropped his head in his hands as Tazuna finished his story, unaware of Kakashi's eye on him, watching as he dug his nails into his scalp.

---------

Sakura was awakened, though she didn't know by what, and she lifted her head from her futon, blinking into the darkness, noticing that the windows were shut and curtains drawn. A sound came, a word, and she turned her head in Sasuke's direction, and spotted Naruto sitting near him, rocking back and forth, his hood drawn low over his face. Indecipherable words drifted from his bruised mouth, and she slowly sat up.

Uzumaki scared her- his uncaring, accusing eyes disturbed her. Sasuke-kun had come to her rescue several time already on this mission, but it was like merely acknowledging her existence was painful for the blond. She'd watched him closely after he had killed that ninja, the Demon Brother, had wanted to see him shaken, horrified, but she couldn't tell when he always looked so miserable. She knew Ino was right though- Naruto wouldn't shed a single tear if something were to happen to her, and she couldn't help feel the surge of resentment that ran through her. And who did Sasuke-kun spend all his energy on?

Naruto stopped rocking, instead looking up at the windows, and even in the dark, she could see the whites of his eyes. She lifted her leg, about to go and ask him if he was alright, when Sasuke lifted his head, blinking blearily at her, then looked behind himself at Naruto. He lifted his hand and rested it on the blond, making him jump, but Naruto seemed to relax, pulling out a small book and leafing through it. Sasuke returned his hand and settled back to sleep.

Sakura lay back down, eyeing the reading blond carefully before shutting her eyes.

She didn't notice the minimal light gleaming against Kakashi's eye as he watched.

-----

The sun had yet to rise, and Naruto's headache was worse than ever, so much that he staggered from the house and across the dock, moving into the trees where he could whimper and howl in pain without anyone hearing him, not over the sound of the crashing surf. _They_ were a cacophony in his head, angry, eager, impatient- all these things at once, so that it felt like his eyes were going to pop from the pressure, and he clawed at his ears as he slumped down into a meadow-like clearing.

He sobbed, wishing he were in the safety of his room, where the windows were covered, where no one would come and bother him. He couldn't stand being out here, being around people, being _unclean_...

"You're bleeding," a soft voice commented, and he jumped, looking up to see a dark-haired girl crouched near him. Naruto shakily got to his feet, his brain making the world slosh around, until he tripped over his own feet. "Don't be afraid," The girl soothed, and placed a hand on his shoulder. Naruto jerked from it, instead slumping into the tree, rasping for breath and struggling to focus on her. The girls eyes ran over his face and frowned, concern marring her brow. "Did you do that to your face?" her eyes fell on his hitai-ate, that he had tied to his bicep. "Are you a ninja?"

Naruto wiped his face, smearing the blood and suddenly something caught his eye- her calloused hands- something that wasn't really important, except that where the calluses were happened to be similar to all the ones he had, from hold kunai. He blinked rapidly to clear away the tears and took in her face, the long dark hair, and most especially, the array of healing herbs she had in her basket.

"Are you the fake hunter-nin?" he rasped, and watched the gentleness in her face strip away, and both their bodies stiffened. Her dark eyes stared into his pained ones, and a wry smile grew.

"You have sad eyes," She commented, and her body loosened. "I've seen those eyes before, many times." She stood up and walked away. "I suppose we'll see each other again, on the battlefield." Sasuke appeared from the foliage, a frown on his face when she passed, but alarm grew when he spotted him, and he quickly rushed over, kneeling down to examine Naruto's face.

"The headache?" he asked tersely, and Naruto managed a nod as the world seemed to dim to red.

"Hun-nin..." he slurred, and felt Sasuke lift him bodily from the ground, and he thought no more.

---------

Inari had pissed him off enough that he had snarled quite nastily at the little bastard, sick of his constant lamenting over his dead father. They didn't hear his mother bitching about it, but the little moron seemed to want to spread his misery about like a disease. The last thing he needed was the punk to wake Naruto, who had uncharacteristically fallen asleep, and stayed that way past breakfast. This was unusual, because he knew Naruto slept very little, and also because it was a day in which Kakashi-sensei felt they might encounter Zabuza.

They left Naruto behind and followed Tazuna to the bridge, and though they expected something to happen, they were still stunned when they were greeted by the bloody bodies of the employees.

"What the hell?!" Tazuna cried, rushing over to one of the guys, who was rasping for air. "What happened?!"

"A monster," the man gasped.

Immediately a mist rolled in, and they quickly surrounded Tazuna. Sasuke felt a thrill of anticipation rush through him, much more exciting than when he and Naruto managed to successfully stick to the tree.

"Aww, he's shaking," Zabuza's voice drifted mockingly from the mist just as they were surrounded by ten to fifteen Zabuza bunshin.

"Go for it," Kakashi-sensei urged with a smile, and Sasuke grinned as he whipped out his kunai and surged forward, dispatching the mizu bunshin quickly, before they could even move. They splashed to the ground as the mist cleared, revealing Zabuza and his fake hunter-nin.

"Looks like the brat got a little tougher," the missing-nin commented to the younger one. "Looks like you got a rival, Haku."

"I suppose it does..." the masked youth replied and Sasuke felt another thrill of excitement. He badly wanted to fight this Haku person.

"I'll take the masked fake," Sasuke took a step forward. Zabuza nodded to Haku, and the youth disappeared, only to reappear before him, and Sasuke barely got his kunai up in time to deflect the senbon. Haku made another move, swing the needle again, but he deflected it as well. "Don't underestimate me," Sasuke hissed.

"I'd like not to kill you, but that's not going to stop you, is it?"

"Don't be an idiot," Sasuke sneered, and the masked youth brought his hand up, a clear sign that he was gather chakra. With one hand, the masked youth began making seals, quickly, while the other pushed against his kunai. The water about them rose, surrounding them, then took the shape of needles.

"I've got you," he said, and Sasuke concentrated chakra to his feet and legs, leaping up out of the way as the water needles flew towards him. They crashed together with the sound of breaking glass, which he ignored as he tossed shuriken down at the enemy, who leaped back out of the way. Sasuke appeared behind him.

"You're pretty slow," he commented, and swung his katana, forcing the masked youth to block with his senbon, then jump back as the needles broke under the force of the blade. Then he threw a kunai to finish the move, forcing the other to drop to the ground, leaving him vulnerable to Sasuke's kick, which knocked him back several feet. The masked nin got to his feet, having landed near Zabuza.

"Haku, at this rate, we'll be driven back. We can't have that," the mist nin looked peeved.

"No," Haku replied, and the air suddenly seemed colder to Sasuke. "No we can't."

Water rose around Sasuke, and to his surprise, solidified into ice, clear sheets of frozen water, and Haku stepped forward and walked into the ice, his image appearing on every sheet.

"Well now," the Haku images said, lifted a senbon needle, and before Sasuke could move, he was attacked on all sides by needles. He cried out, bringing his arms up to shield his neck and head from fatal hits, and he vaguely heard Sakura calling his name as his body burned up from the cold pain of the needles.

He was in trouble.

--------

Naruto woke with a start- a relieved start- free from the colorful eyes that watched him in the black void. _They_ had said nothing to him, but _They_ had watched for what seemed like eternity, enough to drive him insane, and it was a relief to be away from those eyes. He quickly sat up, realizing immediately that he was alone, and that Sasuke was nowhere in sight. He quickly got to his feet, dizziness rushing through him before the world became stable, and he dug into his pack in search of something fresh to wear. To his chagrin, the only clean thing he found was the black hoodie that Kaori had given to him, and he reluctantly pulled off his sweater.

"What happened to you?" a small voice asked, he jumped and looked around, seeing that he was no longer alone, and that Inari's large dark eyes were staring at him. "Where'd you get all those bruises?" Naruto quickly pulled on the black sweater, grabbed his katana and strapped on several kunai. "They're going to die, you know. All of them." Naruto paused in the doorway, confronted by the man Kaiza, who was no longer weeping, and had a rather determined look on his face. He dropped down to his knees and looked up at Naruto beseechingly.

"Please," his voice was stronger now, but no less pleading. "Please tell them to go to a safe place. Please- it's not safe here."

Naruto glanced back at the boy, who was now accompanied by Tsunami, who gave him a concerned look, probably wondering why he was standing in the doorway.

"Y...you should probably hide out somewhere safe for now. You might be targeted."

The woman sent him a surprised look, then nodded. "We'll stay with a friend," she said, and Naruto moved from the doorway and walked down the dock. Inari was most likely right, they all were going to die, and it would be best if he joined them, because it wouldn't go well if he returned to Konoha alone. He made his way up to the bridge, and immediately the sound of metal assaulted his ears, and he sighed as the bridge came into view. He spotted Kakashi-sensei and Momochi Zabuza fighting to one side, and nearby was a square box-like structure, made of what appeared to be ice. As he walked closer, he spotted Sakura nearing the ice structure, and she tossed a kunai at it. Naruto watched as the hunter-nin appeared in the reflection of the ice, snatched the kunai from the air, and tossed it back at her. She shoved Tazuna out of the way and dodged it; Naruto turned his attention to the ice structure, moving close enough to feel the chill, and to see Sasuke in the middle of it, rising slowly to his feet, bleeding from many superficial cuts.

Naruto took a few steps back from the ice prison and gathered his chakra. "Katon: Gokakyu no jutsu." He blew a billow of fire at the ice structure, catching the hunter-nin attention, forcing him to leap back as the nin threw several shuriken at him. The fire hissed against the ice mirrors, but when the smoke cleared, there was no effect. Naruto glanced at his sensei, who seemed torn between fighting Zabuza and wanting to leap to Sasuke's aid. Naruto eyed the structure again before concluding that the jutsu must be canceled by the user, and he reluctantly jumped over the ice walls and landed at Sasuke's side.

Sasuke shook his head. "You probably shouldn't have done that." Naruto shrugged and peered at all the images.

"Kage bunshin no jutsu," and several bunshin appeared, each one attacking a mirror, but before they could land a hit, the masked nin leaped from the mirror, a mere blur, and dispatched very one of them before returning to the mirror.

"So you came," he commented from the mirror. "I wondered where you were. It was a nice try with the fire, but you're going to need a higher level than that to melt these mirrors."

The air became filled with senbon, and Naruto lifted his arms to protect his head as he felt the needles sink into his flesh. The attack stopped, and he looked to see Sasuke was also stuck with pins, and he grunted as he removed some of them.

"Tell me," the masked nin seemed to direct his question to Naruto. "What do you fight for?"

Naruto removed a needle from his right arm, and was alarmed when he could not feel any pain, nor move it. He grimaced- a damaged nerve no doubt. He looked up at the nin, feeling another headache bloom. "Nothing," he replied, and there was a minute jerk in the nin's body. Had his reply surprised him? Did he expect more?

"Shit," Sasuke muttered, and Naruto turned to see that Sasuke was staring down at a senbon needle that had pierced his knee, while his other leg trembled under the weight. "Can't move it," he grunted. Naruto lifted his head, and he imagined that the masked nin and his eyes connected for a moment, a clear understanding of each one's intentions.

And things happened rather quickly.

----

Sasuke silently cursed his leg, grabbing the needle that was embedded in his leg with a slippery, bloody hand and tried to pull it out, biting his lip from the pain. At this rate, they were going to lose, and he couldn't stand the mere _idea_ that he would lose to that masked bastard. There was a familiar gust of wind in front of him, smelling of detergent and bleach, and his head jerked up in surprise, immediately spotting Haku lying on the ground. Struggling to return to his feet, and he pulled out a kunai quickly to toss it at the nin, but then he noticed Naruto, who was still standing in front of him, and his eyes traveled up his body, falling on several of the needles, before settling on the ones embedded in his neck.

He dropped the kunai, his hands going numb. Naruto made a gurgling sound, and his legs crumbled under him. Sasuke managed to catch him, grunting at the weight but lowering him gently to the ground, eyes wide, mind going blank.

Naruto's eyes were wide, blood trickling from his nose and mouth, whole body wracked with small spasms. His wide, frightened blue eyes landed on him, his mouth opening and choked words drifted out.

"Mad...they mad...so mad..." the capillaries in his right eye popped -the eye swimming in blood.

"What did you do?" Sasuke wheezed, his whole body feeling numb.

"Just...moved...couldn't help..." and suddenly the trembling stopped and the pain seemed to fade from Naruto's face, leaving him looking momentarily surprised. "So quiet," his voice was more clear now, and his gaze moved to the sky, blood leaking from one eye like tears. "So quiet..." And to Sasuke's silent horror, he stopped moving, stopped breathing, body going limp, empty eyes trained on the sky.

Sasuke blinked several times, his mind having a hard time understanding what had happened. Naruto...Naruto was...dead?

"He landed a blow on me, and didn't even flinch." Haku voice intruded upon his numbness. "Was he precious to you?"

Naruto was dead. Naruto had...jumped in front of him- Naruto had protected him. He had never asked Naruto to do that for him!

"Is this the first time a friend has died?"

"Shut up," Sasuke hissed, feeling the rage break through the numbness. "Shut the _fuck up!_" He stood up, no longer feeling the pain in his body, could only feel hatred toward the one standing across from him. "I'm going to kill you!"

He raced toward the masked nin, all his rage focused on crushing him, and when he moved, Sasuke could see it, almost predict it, and he dodged out of the way, grabbed the nin and smashed his fist into the masked face with enough force to crack through the mask. The nin staggered back, raised his hands to do a jutsu, but Sasuke was faster, and with a brutal chakra induced kick, knocked the masked nin through the mirrors, oblivious to it shattering around him as he leaped upon the nin, raising his kunai to drive it into the girly face that looked calmly back at him.

"Did he live for you?" he asked, and for a second Sasuke hesitated. "Living was painful for him- he _wanted_ to die. I did him a favor, and he let himself go."

Sasuke's lip curled up in hate. "_Fuck_ _you_," he spat as he brought the kunai down, burying it into the boy's eye, uncaring that he hadn't tried to stop him.

There was a great surge of chakra behind him, but he only turned and staggered back to where Naruto lay, staring up at the sky. He'd seen that same empty look on his mother's face when he had walked in on them, had seen it on several of his family members. His whole family, gone, Naruto gone...Kaori gone, everyone he knew, dying around him.

Someone was saying his name, but he didn't care. It wasn't important- he felt drained, hollowed out. How long would Naruto have lived if Sasuke had never met him? He'd be back in his apartment, with his books and candy bars, and his pillow, cleaning everyday without fail.

Someone was shaking him, and a muffle of words seemed to make it to his brain.

"...alive Sasuke. He's alive."

_What_? He looked up to see a very concerned sensei kneeling over Naruto, one arm on Sasuke's shoulder. Sasuke looked at Naruto, and the bloody blond was shaking- trembling, face pained. Sakura was standing next to them, along with Tazuna, both their faces pale.

"What happened?" Sasuke asked, looking around, and Sakura gave a weak smile.

"Ummm, you defeated Haku." She glanced nervously back at the dead nin's body. "Your eyes were red."

Naruto moaned, lifting an arm to touch his neck, his face the epitome of misery, and Sasuke felt pure relief run through him. Naruto was alive. Then he scowled. "Idiot," he muttered.

--------

Kakashi sat in Tazuna's home, staring down at the pale body displayed before him. Sasuke and Sakura were with Tazuna as he joyfully finished building the bridge, with many eager villagers helping him. Halfway through his fight with Zabuza, Gatou and several of his lackeys had showed up, severing the contract he had made with the missing-nin, and completely diverting his attention from the fight. Zabuza had instead attacked the mogul, killing several of his men and removing Gatou's head from his body, dying shortly after from blood loss.

He'd then rushed to his students' side, expecting to finish off the youth, but found him with a kunai in the eye and Sakura trying to get Sasuke to speak. Said boy had been sitting in front of Naruto, eyes hollowed out and haunted, and when he had seen the state Naruto was in, he hadn't blamed him, and was all too glad to tell him that Naruto wasn't dead.

He'd gotten them all back to Tazuna's place only to find that it had been ran-sacked by two samurai, Tsunami reported, having watched it happen from a neighbor's window where she and Inari had been hiding, via the suggestion from Naruto.

After that, he had stripped the blond so he could remove the needles from his neck and body, and now had time to mull over the overall condition of Naruto's body. As he had imagined, the bruising on his face wasn't exclusive to that area, in fact covering all of Naruto's body, though it was much faded and most likely looked worse days before. Kakashi could count every rib, and map the veins running along his arms. How had he managed to function all this time? He had been pondering the state of Naruto's mind for the last few days, and was going to request a psychiatric evaluation once they reached Konoha, because he had seen behavior that needed some serious professional help, the kind he wasn't qualified for.

He looked up as Sasuke limped into the room and began to systemically shut every window and curtain before coming to the blond's side. "His nose stop bleeding?" Kakashi nodded, eye watching as the Uchiha covered Naruto with a blanket and sat down next to him. For some reason, Naruto's nose wouldn't stop bleeding, enough to make him wonder if there was some hemorrhaging in the brain, a thoroughly alarming prospect, but the trickle had finally stopped an hour ago. "You can leave now," he raised a brow at the boy. "Naruto won't like it...it'll make him crazy, you being right here."

"Define crazy."

Sasuke scowled at him and rested his elbows against his crossed knees, intertwining his hands together and placing his chin on the back of his hands, dark eyes staring down at the blond.

Kakashi got to his feet and headed for the door, pausing to look back at the boys. "He'll be up and about in a week." and as he turned to go, Sasuke's soft reply gave him serious pause, because he knew Sasuke wasn't talking to him.

"Most likely sooner. You'll make it sooner, won't you?"

**TBC**

**None of that Haku saving Zabuza in this one. Sorry.**

**As to Naruto's headaches: he gets them often, especially when _They_ are mad- or want him to do something. Other times, he gets them when he is frustrated or upset, which is not good for his overall health- but who am I kidding- this is not the healthiest Naruto ever written. **

**Like I said, I glossed over much, unless I wanted to change it. Sasuke still activated the Sharingan though. The nosebleed was caused by _Them_, because _They_ are pissed.**

**On a more personal note, I've spent an unreasonable amount of time over the last few years thinking how horrible Naruto's orange outfit is, but re-reading Wave has shown me that Kishimoto seems to specialize on the _worst outfits I have ever seen. _What the_ hell _is Zabuza wearing?**


	12. Chapter 12

Disclaimer: Naruto does not belong to Kirsdarkenvar

**The Ghost and the Darkness**

_**Chapter Twelve**_

Sasuke spent the next two days watching over Naruto, removing the gauze over the holes in his flesh, wiping him down, and getting him to eat. Naruto seemed content to stare at the ceiling and ignore the world around him, seeming more depressed than Sasuke was used to seeing him. Around them, Tsunami cleaned up, Tazuna practically skipped to work, having gotten most of the men in Wave to happily return to building the bridge. Inari moped.

By the third day, Naruto sat up and took a hasty shower, to Sasuke's relief- he had thought he would have to threaten the blond to get him moving, but something had gotten the other up and moving, suspiciously after his body had given a rather nasty jerk.

Tsunami seemed to have finally breeched the wall that separated her from Naruto, after he recovered enough to move about. Having spotted her in the process of cleaning up the mess that Gatou's men had created, Naruto took up cleaning the house with a fanaticism that Sasuke was familiar with. Tsunami had originally been delighted with his help, directing him to areas she needed help with, but that soon turned into concerned alarm when she realized that it wasn't a gesture of kindness that motivated him to clean. He scrubbed her walls, tables, floors, bedroom- whatever was washable was taken, and while the others watched on in disbelief, Sasuke sat by, counted his kunai, and waited it out.

This was normal, this was Naruto, alive and as close to well as he would ever get, and Sasuke wasn't in the mood to complain. Every so often he would feel the chill, remember that brief moment of numbing horror, see Naruto lying there, bruised eyes gazing lifelessly at the sky, and he would look at the blond, just to assure himself that the other was still alive. Never again would he allow such an event to take place.

He also had other concerns, in the shape of a silver haired jounin. For days, he had watched the man watch Naruto with a dark calculating eye. He knew that Naruto was aware of the man watching him, judging by his increasingly hunched shoulders, and the fact that at intervals he would seek out Sasuke's company, standing by him. This would last only as long as it took Naruto's eyes to rove about the house and pick out imperfections, and he would then abandon Sasuke to fix them.

In the end, his cleaning left Tsunami uncomfortable and nervous.

It was half way through the week that Naruto bothered to mention something else that was bugging him, in the form of Kaiza, who had apparently been wandering around the windows and doorway, looking in. His presence was upsetting Naruto, who kept as far from the windows as he dared.

"What do you think he wants?" Sasuke asked, and Naruto threw a weary look in Inari's direction, who was moping, _still_. "You think he's hanging around because of that whiny little bastard?"

Naruto shrugged, wringing his fingers in silent distress.

By the week's end, they were ready to depart, and Tsunami's home looked better than before they had even arrived. The bridge had been officially completed, everyone was giddy to the point where it was ridiculous, and Sasuke was doubly grateful when they said their good byes and headed home. But no one could be more grateful than Naruto was, it practically showed on his face, sheer relief to be leaving the waterfront, to get the salt out of his skin, and to get newspaper between him and the rest of the world.

---------------------------------------

The familiar bustle of Konoha was unexpectedly welcome to him as they moved into the village. Naruto lowered his hood down and stepped closer to Sasuke, anxious to return to the Uchiha compound, where it was safer. He had been sure, at one point, that he would perish in Wave, and he had been so close. Even now, he could remember the quiet, how peaceful it was in that brief moment, where _They _couldn't shout, coax, laugh, or hurt him. _They_ were simply gone.

He remembered Sasuke's face, pale with horror, eyes so wide. He remembered how _angry_ _They_ were, the rage pounding into him- he didn't know why he had jumped in front of Sasuke like that- was it the ingrained instinct of a ninja?

"Let's head to the Tower and give our report," Kakashi-sensei suggested. "Remember, a mission isn't completely finished until you report it."

"Okay," Sakura smiled as they headed toward the Tower. They were greeted by the Hokage, and a report was given. Naruto didn't pay much attention to what was happening around him or what they were saying- his head was pounding and he feared to sleep; _They _were still seething, angry whispers echoing in the reaches of his mind.

"Good job," the words cut through to him and he looked up to see the Hokage's dark eyes pinned on him. He quickly averted his eyes and followed the others out of the Tower, Kakashi-sensei stopping at the door.

"You guys go ahead and take the rest of the day off, and tomorrow, to rest."

Relief. Finally they were headed back to the compound. He lowered his hood as they parted ways with Sakura, walking closer to Sasuke, avoiding eye contact with any of the villagers.

"We'll train," Sasuke said suddenly, glancing back at him. "Tomorrow. Tonight we rest."

Sasuke made them stop at a market to buy more soup and candy bars, which upset him, because now he was seen with him purchasing the goods. What if they poisoned them?

It was as he was agonizing over the possibilities of his poisoning that he spotted Nabeshin leaning against a building, arms folded across his chest, dark eyes watching the villagers as they moved about their lives. Naruto paused, very surprised to see him outside of the compound. None of the other Uchiha ever ventured beyond the gates of the compound, apparently satisfied to lament in their respected places.

"What is it?" Sasuke asked, looking around, having stopped when he realized Naruto was no longer following him. His hand moved toward his pocket, where many of his kunai remained.

"Nabeshin," Naruto whispered, and the ghost looked over at him, as if hearing his words above the noise of the village. He broke into a grin and headed toward them, looking strangely relieved. Several villagers walked right through him, jumping, or shaking their heads at the sensation, though Nabeshin didn't seem to notice.

"_There_ you are," the Uchiha clearly sounded relieved, pale rusted puffs coming from his mouth. "I was looking all over for you."

"Where is he?" Sasuke asked, and Naruto made a quick gesture to where Nabeshin stood. Sasuke stared at the area, squinting, trying hard to see where his relative was, but seeing nothing. "Let's go," he ordered, and they quickly moved toward the compound, Nabeshin following after them. "Tell me everything he says to you."

Nabeshin sent Sasuke a curious look. "You do everything he tells you to?" he asked Naruto, who simply hunched his shoulders and said nothing. When they entered the compound the other Uchiha lifted and turned their heads in his direction, watching as they headed for the main house.

"When you didn't show up for training, I went to look for you," Nabeshin commented, and Naruto reluctantly repeated the words to Sasuke, who looked intrigued. He paused at the porch of the main house as they stepped inside, and Naruto balked at the dust that floated in the air.

Just as he headed for the kitchen to gather cleaning supplies, Sasuke's mother chose that moment to enter, mouth open, dark eyes trained on Sasuke. Naruto quickly turned and rushed up to their room, shutting the door quickly and sitting in his corner, head in his hands. He was afraid to sleep, more than he usually was, because _They_ were angry with him, and he could not bear to feel _Their_ eyes on him. Ever since he had jumped in front of Sasuke and had taken his blows, _They_ had been torturing him. His head ached constantly with _Their_ fury, his stomach cramped, body shook, vision blurred.

Something dropped in his lap and he moved his hands from his eyes to see that it was a candy bar. He nudged it away, knowing that the villagers had seen him with Sasuke when he had purchased them. It was over now, he couldn't eat them anymore, or the soup for that matter.

"Eat it, Naruto. You haven't eaten for days." Sasuke put the candy bar back in his lap.

Naruto shook his head. "It's poisoned now. They saw me with you."

"Don't be stupid," Sasuke snapped, removing his shirt. "They couldn't have poisoned it with me right there, buying them. Besides, you stood outside, no one notices you, so _eat_ _it_."

Naruto wrung his fingers in agitation, but he opened the candy bar and ate it, knowing that Sasuke was right, and wishing his head didn't hurt so much that it ruined reasonable thinking.

"Huh," a voice came, and he looked up to see that Nabeshin was in the room, looking around. "I've never been in this house before." He looked down at him, then averted his eyes. 'It's weird but, ever since I started training you, I've been..." he shook his head. "It had never occurred to me to leave the compound before. But when you didn't show up, I was _compelled_ to look for you."

Naruto looked in Sasuke's direction- he was changing out of his shorts.

"It's interesting the stuff you hear when no one knows your around," the ghost said, eyes sparkling.

"Nabeshin says he's heard some stuff," Naruto said to Sasuke, whose head darted up in surprise, eyes moving about the room.

"What's he heard?"

"Well, there's a chuunin exam coming within the month, and apparently the Kazekage is going to be present. There'll be ninja from all over, interesting people..."

Naruto repeated his words.

"Chuunin Exam?" he seemed puzzled.

Naruto rubbed agitated eyes. "The Chunin Exam is used to show off the young talent of each village, and a way to avoid war. The other is to assess and promote genin to chuunin level. A jounin can enter his Team after they've completed eight to ten successful missions."

Nabeshin nodded cheerfully- Sasuke's eyes burned with interest, and he knew he was mentally counting the number of missions they had done. "Do you think Kakashi-sensei will allow us to enter?"

Naruto shook his head- he hoped not, he didn't want to be a chuunin, he didn't want to have anything to do with Exams, where people watched him, thought about him, talked about him. He shuddered.

Nabeshin shook his head. "It's so strange...it never occurred to me to leave the compound before meeting you, and suddenly, such an urge to find you...Where'd you go anyway?"

---------

When his students were out of sight, Kakashi turned back into the room and moved back in front of the Hokage.

"How did it go?" the Sandaime asked, dark eyes scanning his face intensely.

Kakashi sighed, shaking his head. "Where do I start?" He looked up at the ceiling. "I've seen behavior that concerns me, behavior that may get him or the rest of the Team killed. Does he suffer from schizophrenia? Any other mental disorder you failed to mention? The newspaper on the walls, talking to himself... I've seen the state of his body, and he's near starvation."

Sandaime steepled his fingers together and gazed out the window. "Believe it or not, he's in better condition than before. Since Sasuke's unexpected arrival, his condition has improved drastically."

Kakashi's brow rose in disbelief.

"Have you ever had him evaluated by a professional? Institutionalized?"

Sarutobi smiled, wrinkles multiplying. "I had the same talk with Umino-san several years ago Can you imagine Naruto within the hands of strangers? He would kill himself, I think. He wouldn't be able to survive in a controlled environment like that- he's incredibly stubborn. Naruto thrives in an environment he can control, and Sasuke may think that he has control over him, but if the boy took a step back and looked at it from a different eye, he would see that it is _he_ that is being controlled."

It was true. He had observed Sasuke's behavior when it came to Naruto- how many times he had heard Sasuke say, '_Naruto doesn't like it._' Sasuke _accommodated_ Naruto, changing many of his habits to mirror the blond's.

"I've never tried to make him take medication, because I could never get him to eat- I can't imagine how Sasuke had conquered that feat." His face darkened. "But he is your student now, Kakashi. Do what you think is best for him."

Kakashi gave another heavy sigh. And what _was_ best?

------------

Having ventured out of the compound, it seemed that Nabeshin was reluctant to be left behind. He followed them on missions- they were back to the mundane ones, and had a snide comment for everything, words that only Naruto could hear and never bothered to repeat. He noticed his dark eyes seemed to grow more bitter as the days had gone by, most often directed towards the villagers. He watched them with cold eyes, following them as they moved obliviously about their lives, not unlike a predator watching prey..

Nabeshin's silent simmering made him nervous and uneasy, and he found that avoiding the ghost was all but impossible. The only place the ghost didn't go was the bathroom, and understandably, the room where Sasuke's father dwelt.

"I'd be pissed too, if my son wiped out my entire clan too...the little traitor." This was said when Sasuke had tried to make him go back into the room. He had flat out refused, and no amount of pushing, pulling, or threats could change his mind. Nabeshin had watched this with a frown, eyes darting between the two as they struggled in front of the door, Sasuke pulling him, and Naruto flopping to the floor, using his body weight to thwart the Uchiha's efforts.

Sasuke had found a deeper use for Nabeshin. Ever since the ghost had mentioned the Chuunin Exams, the Uchiha had been sending him out to gather information on everyone who was entering. Nabeshin returned with tales of Grass ninja, Sound ninja, Mist ninja, and Sand ninja, which he felt would be of particular interest to Naruto.

"He's a jinchuuriki like you," the dead Uchiha claimed, waiting for his reaction. But this was not news to him, he knew there were others and had absolutely no desire to meet them. He really didn't want to meet anyone in general. Sasuke seemed alarmed though.

"Who is he? What does he look like?"

"His name is Gaara and he's got red hair, rings around his eyes, and a big jar thing on his back. He's not very friendly either."

Sasuke's eyes narrowed in silent speculation. "Stay away from him," he commanded. Lately most of what he said was a command. Naruto's response was to ignore him and continue to do what he was doing, which was cleaning the house; He and his clones tended to make quick work of the house, something that seemed to fascinate Nabeshin.

He watched the clones as they worked, Naruto knew this because when the clones dissipated he knew that they noticed the ghost. His eyes had turned shrewed and thoughtful. What did he want?

-------

Days went by, he and Naruto returned to their usual routine of D-rank missions, though he chafed at them. He wanted another high ranking mission, and he didn't want to clean houses, retrieve animals, paint fences, or plant vegetables (Naruto had no problems doing any of these things.) Sasuke himself spent many nights mulling over whether Kakashi-sensei was going to enter them into the Exam. He sent Nabeshin out to spy on Team Eight and Ten, discovering that Yuuhi Kurenai was speculating it; Nabeshin had followed her home to find this out.

There was something else he discovered. Nabeshin would not listen to him unless Naruto was the one giving the commands. He had discovered this when he had waited for the ghost to return with news of Sarutobi Asuma's decision and hadn't received any.

"Has Nabeshin returned yet?" he had asked one night before he had gone to bed. Naruto had blinked up blearily at him, having not slept in three days and having a harder time understanding him because of it. The blond had then glanced at the door.

"He never left," he had murmured, surprising him.

"What do you mean? I told him to follow Team Ten to see if they're going to be in the Exam."

Naruto had shrugged, leaning over the book he was reading. "He says he doesn't have to do what you say."

"What about you? Does he have to do what _you_ say?" he'd long gotten over the idea that the whole compound was filled with relatives he could not see.

It turned out Nabeshin had, because the next day Naruto had said randomly that it was unknown whether Sarutobi-sensei was going to nominate Team Ten. Ever since Nabeshin had become their spy, it at first was confusing. He didn't know if Naruto was talking to him or just repeating the ghost's words, especially when he had stopped saying 'Nabeshin says.'

In the end, he had to settle for knowing that anything longer than half a sentence was Nabeshin's words.

Lately he had been thinking beyond Konoha- actually he had been thinking about Haku. Haku had been tougher than them, more powerful than he had thought a kid his age could be, despite having Itachi for an elder brother. It made him think that there was much more to learn _outside_ of Konoha, than there was inside of it. Training was moving too slow here, for him and Naruto, and he wanted to learn more, more than Kakashi-sensei was teaching them.

----------

Sakura glanced ahead at her teammates glumly, feeling another wave of depression fall over her. Ever since they had returned from Wave, each day had been more miserable than the day before. It appeared that Sasuke and Naruto had forgotten her. They rarely talked to her, interacting only enough to get the missions done, and Naruto didn't interact at all. It was hurtful and frustrating. She had tried to change- being more serious during training, practicing things she had never cared to do in the Academy. Kakashi-sensei continued to help her with her endurance, building up more chakra, working on her kunai skills. She wanted to show them that she was useful, that she wasn't just a girl, but it seemed they had forgotten her. It was like the Academy all over again, and she still couldn't help but to blame Naruto for this.

Naruto came to a stop quite suddenly, but this time she halted before bumping into him, His hooded head was always bowed, his gaze, from what she could tell, was usually focused on the ground, and she often wondered how he managed to not walk into Sasuke, especially since he walked so closely to him. His head lifted slowly, she could see two blue eyes under his hair, and they were focused on something across the street. Sasuke turned back, his sharp dark eyes scanning the area and falling on someone.

Sakura turned to look, spotting a small group across the street. Immediately she saw that they were Sand- nin by their hitai-ate, one a red head with shadowed green eyes, a girl with sandy blond hair, and another boy with purple paint lining his face. The red head was giving her the creeps- she could feel his killing intent from the other side of the street, his eyes focused on Naruto.

She looked at the hooded blond, and for once he didn't look his usual miserable- instead his face was empty, red-rimmed eyes trained solely on the Suna-nin. The moment became more uncomfortable, for both boys hadn't moved,and it seemed the others weren't going to either- except the purple faced boy, who was steadily looking more pissed. Then Naruto gave a jerk, his eyelids fluttering until he lowered his head and turned to continue heading toward their meeting place. Sasuke paused to give the Suna-nin another cold glance before he too moved on. Sakura remained, trying to puzzle out the animosity- maybe it was a guy thing..?

"Coming Sakura?"

His voice startled her, she turned to see Sasuke and Naruto waiting for her. They were _waiting_ for _her_. She still existed! She quickly followed the boys as they headed for the bridge, feeling like she could take on any challenge.

**TBC**

**Not much to say beyond medical issues that have been making writing, and especially typing, near impossible. Sorry. **

**I've got plans for Nabeshin and the Chuunin Exams.**


	13. Chapter 13

Disclaimer: Naruto does not belong to Kirsdarkenvar

**Ghost and the Darkness**

**Chapter Thirteen**

Kakashi stood in front of his Team, staring down at their young faces, Sakura's awash with apprehension Sasuke's with poorly veiled anticipation, and he couldn't see Naruto's face because he was staring down at the cobbled ground.

"As you've no doubt noticed, there are several different groups of foreign ninja in the village," Sakura nodded in affirmation. "It is because there is a Chunin Exam coming up in three days. After careful consideration, I've decided to enter you all in the Exam." Sasuke was fighting a grin while Naruto's shoulders sagged visibly. Kakashi produced the three Exam registration papers and handed them to the three genin. "I want each of you to consider whether you are ready to take the Exam. Spend the next three days deciding, then turn in your papers at the Academy...or don't. It really is an individual decision." He waved and popped away, sure that all three would enter and at least one of them would be forced against their will.

He'd have to talk to Sasuke about that, because it was abundantly clear that Naruto didn't want to be a ninja, and reluctant ninja were dead ninja. He didn't want that to happen to any of his students.

-----------------

Sasuke's pen flew over the packet with a flurry that revealed what his face wasn't. Naruto watched from across the table as Nabeshin leaned over Sasuke's shoulder, peering down at the papers, eyes silent and thoughtful. A bang from the living room made him jump, and he glanced up to see one of his clones holding a broken lamp, its face flushed with embarrassment as it rushed past him. He didn't know what it had done to break the object, but he would once it dissipated. Everything it had done, thought,or felt would come to him. The clone quickly placed the broken lamp into the trash bin and rushed back into the living room. Naruto watched as Nabeshin lifted his head, eyes following the clone as it exited the kitchen. Then he turned and looked at him, black eyes quickly averting themselves when they connected with his own. The ghost turned and went into the living room.

"You haven't filled yours out," he looked up to see that Sasuke was staring at him. Naruto looked down at the papers, feeling dread course through him.

_**Doitdoitdoitdoitdoit**__,_ _They _urged, causing pain to lance through him. Sasuke got up from his seat and moved to stand over him, the pen still in his hand. "Go on, we're not going to go through this. Just sign it." He grabbed his hand, placed the pen in it, flipped to the last page and pressed the pen on the last final line of signature.

**DOITDOITDOITDOIT**, _They_ were louder now. Naruto blinked rapidly as he began to sign the paper. The moment he finished, Sasuke snatched the papers away and went back to his seat, carefully filling out the rest of the paperwork, trying to match his writing with his own.

"Ha! I thought so!" A voice exclaimed from the living room, causing Sasuke to jump, pulling out his kunai and turning to the kitchen doorway.

A clone appeared in the doorway, thin face split into a wide grin, bruised blue eyes sparkling. It's hood was pulled back, hair hanging around its face and back. Everything about the clone was instantly wrong.

"What the hell?" Sasuke murmured, and the clone turned to him, grinning.

"It worked!" it exclaimed, and a red puff of smoke came from its mouth. Naruto paled, slipping out of his seat and backing away. What had he done?

"Who are you?" Sasuke demanded, face going stiff.

"It's me! Nabeshin!" Sasuke's lips parted in surprise as he lowered his kunai. Naruto felt bile rise in his throat. "I've been thinking the last few weeks, that I might be able to possess these clones that Naruto makes." He lifted his hands to his face and wiggled the bony fingers in delight. "And it worked!" All the while rusted smoke puffed out of his mouth with each word. "I can feel again."

Sasuke's face went from wary alarm to intense fascination, and he stepped over to the clone, looking him up and down. "I hadn't thought of this..."

"But I've been thinking of it for weeks now," Nabeshin looked smug as the other clone appeared behind him, miserable blue eyes focused sharply on the possessed clone. It made a quick move, about to hit the Nabeshin possessed clone, but he moved out of the way and followed with a quick counter strike, kicking the clone squarely in the chest. The clone was knocked back, immediately bursting into smoky chakra.

Naruto's eyes blinked rapidly as the clones information began to run through his head. _He had done the laundry, made Sasuke's bed, wiped down the extra rooms, scrubbed their floors. He had watched as the ghost walked up behind the unsuspecting clone and stepped into him. Had watched the clone twitch and shudder before settling into an unfamiliar stance and expression. He had felt angry at this intrusion of the other clone and had watched him move toward the kitchen. He decided to destroy the other clone. He moved to hit it, free it from the unwanted intruder, but he was hit instead. He was surprised and angry. He was..._

Naruto's eyes opened, focusing on Sasuke and the Nabeshin clone, who was glaring at the spot where the other clone had been.

"What the hell was that about?" the Nabeshin clone grumbled, scratching his head. Sasuke eyes him, then glanced back at Naruto, who lowered his hood, smoothing it down.

"This has possibilities," he breathed.

"Indeed it does, my young relative," Nabeshin agreed in Naruto's cracked voice. Naruto flinched.

"I wonder if you can possess people like the Yamanaka's" Sasuke wondered aloud, and the clone shook his head.

"Nope. Tried it when you guys were gone- didn't work."

"How do you feel?" Sasuke inquired curiously.

The Nabeshin clone stared at his hands, then grinned up at Sasuke. "Alive. I feel so alive, and there's such a rush going through me. It's probably Naruto's chakra," he looked over at him but quickly averted his eyes.

"What's that stuff coming out of your mouth?"

Nabeshin blinked, looking at the rust colored puffs coming from his mouth, then shrugged. "Dunno. Maybe its something that happens when I possess a clone."

Naruto's eyes narrowed while _They_ whispered in anticipation.

Sasuke leaned against the kitchen counter, dark eyes surveying the Nabeshin possessed clone. "Do you think you can use the chakra in that clone for any jutsu?"

The unnatural elation in the clones face drained away, replaced by uncertainty. "I'm...I'm not sure. This clone has only the minimum amount of chakra required to perform menial tasks. I could lose it if I try anything." The prospect of losing a material body after not having one for so long was apparently daunting for the ghost. But Sasuke wave his worries away as trivial.

"It's just a clone; Naruto can make you more. Try a simple henge- turn into how you used to look."

The clone hesitated, pale brows furrowed in anxiety before he performed the jutsu. His form popped, for a second he was the height of a man with dark, but then the cloned popped. Naruto choked on his own scream as information hit him, things that did not belong to him.

_He was walking in the compound along with other Uchiha- he recognized several- even knew their names. He was talking to Fukaku with many others. They were planning the rebellion. He was excited, they had been wrongly blamed. He was sick of being a scapegoat for a village that rightly belonged to them. He was at the infirmary, his girlfriend was pregnant. He was startled but happy. His child would thrive in a new era of the Uchiha. He heard someone cry out, he smelled blood, he turned and pulled out his katana. Sharingan eyes met his own, far more advanced, then pain burning across his chest. He blew a katon at him, but he wavered away. A genjutsu- he was trapped the moment their eyes connected. A blow to his head, no pain then, only falling to the ground. He saw his girlfriend in the hallway where he lay, she was four months along, she was staring in horror as the traitor approached. He could not move, could not feel the blood on his face. Could not cry out when her head fell to the linoleum. And the traitor moved on without stopping. He felt nothing...he..._

"Owowowow," someone was whispering, and Naruto's mouth was full of blood and something solid, and once his eyes stopped rolling they focused on Sasuke's pale face. The Uchiha was leaning over him, face twisted in a pained grimace, and Naruto realized that he was lying on the floor with Sasuke's fingers in his mouth. He immediately spat them out, turning over on his stomach and crawling under the table. Sasuke's blood dribbled down his chin and he inadvertently swallowed it all. Their malicious delight curled through him above Sasuke's whispered curses. The Uchiha rummaged around the kitchen before crouching down in front of the table, peering at him. His index and middle finger were wrapped in bandages.

"You were having a seizure...I think. I thought you were going to swallow your tongue. I heard that happened..once."

Naruto wiped his face, still tasting Sasuke's blood in his mouth. Nabeshin's transparent legs approached the table, and he leaned down, peering at him with his dark eyes and exposed brain.

"Don't be mad," he pleaded. "You've got to understand how horrible it is to be stuck this way, disconnected from everything."

Naruto sent him a glare, and the ghost balked, disappearing from view. Now he knew why Nabeshin hung around the house-like infirmary. He crawled from under the table, seeing that Sasuke was back to filling out his application. Nabeshin was no where in sight, and after he scrubbed the kitchen floor, he quickly went to their room and to his pillow where he sat and mulled over his future.

He would be in the Chunin Exams- Sasuke was making sure of that- but the likelihood of them passing was slim. They would be up against other genin who no doubt had more experience and time on their side compared to what Team Seven had. Naruto rubbed a bruised elbow. But what if they did pass? He stopped rubbing. If they passed, they would be sent on separate missions...Sasuke wouldn't be able to force him out. Sasuke would be too busy trying to become a jounin, because unlike th Chunin Exams, Sasuke wouldn't need him or Sakura to enroll. Of course, Sasuke didn't know he needed the two of them to enroll in the Exams, that a three man Team was needed.

If they made it to chunin, Sasuke could do what he wanted, and Naruto could resign. A smile bloomed on his face even as his head began to pound and his nose began to bleed. He could resign, and Sasuke wouldn't need him then. He wiped the blood from his mouth and looked up as Sasuke came in. The Uchiha paused at the door when his eyes fell on him, then turned away. Moments later he returned with paper towels and crouched before him, pressing the towels against his nose and mouth and pushing his head back.

"You should wear black more, with all the blood spill on yourself." Naruto's vision blurred. He hadn't slept in a while, he feared to, but his body was at its limits- a fine tremble was already running through his body. "Is your brain hemorrhaging or something?" Sasuke sounded angry, but he couldn't hide the concern in his voice. "You can't be doing this at the Exam Naruto."

He was tipping over, felt Sasuke ease him gently on his side. He wanted to keep his eyes open, avoid what was coming to him...

The room darkened to black, a giant red claw-like hand reached from the darkness and grabbed him. Sasuke was gone. Naruto screeched as the the clawed hand gripped and carried him into the dark.

"**We've been waiting for you,**" _They_ boomed, and he was once again surrounded by multicolored eyes.** "Do you think you can hide from us?"** The clawed hand opened up, and he curled into a ball in its fast palm. **"How **_**dare**_** you risk our lives like that." **The palm rippled and something very close growled, causing Naruto to uncurl. He looked toward the edge of the palm where two smaller red eyes approached. Naruto sat up and edged toward the clawed fingers as the eyes moved closer. **"We think you need a lesson in obedience,"** there was laughter in _Their_ voices.

The moving red eyes belonged to a morphed creature unlike any he had ever seen. Its body was a red mass of human arms and legs, twisted at the joints that cracked as it moved. Its face seemed stuck between a fox and a human, morphing between the two, eyes widening and narrowing, ears elongating and shortening, mouth stretching, teeth grinding. It moved toward him in jerky movements.

"I-I did everything you wanted!" he rasped in terror. "I took Sasuke in, I joined the Academy!"

One of the many arms of the creature shot out and grabbed his ankle. Naruto yelped at the force of the grip as he was dragged forward.

"**You can't hide your thoughts from us-they betray you."**

"**You must be disciplined," **the creature hissed. Naruto kicked out with his free leg, catching the creature in the face twice, but doing no damage. He cried out, writhing as many of the limbs grabbed his and held him down, gripping his face in its hands. It held him still, turning red eyes onto his.

"Sasuke!" he screamed. "Sasuke!"

----------------

Sasuke sat back on his bed, wondering if he should wipe Naruto's face, which was now very bloody and making a puddle around his face. He squeezed his throbbing bitten fingers, wondering if Naruto really was suffering from a brain hemorrhage. Did people die instantly from those, or was it a slow process? He frowned as Naruto's body began to tremble violently, making gurgling sounds in the back of his throat. Should he wake him up? He was reluctant to, Naruto hadn't slept in days, probably weeks, and he needed to get all the rest he could for the Chunin Exams.

"Sasuke," Naruto gasped wetly, his bloody face crumbling, eyes rolling under his lids. Sasuke stood up.

"Naruto?" Was he already awake?

"Sasuke," the blond choked, and he moved over to him and grasped a thin shoulder.

"Hey," he shook his shoulders and the blonds eyes shot open. Naruto was up and trying to crawl his way into the corner.

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry," he whispered desperately from behind his arms. Sasuke sat back on his bed and waited. Constant nose bleeds couldn't be healthier, no matter how one looked at it, be he could imagine taking Naruto to a doctor. Ten minutes later, the blond seemed to have calmed down enough to lower his arms, darting weary eyes about the room, then simply slumping there, flesh not covered by blood a pasty white.

Sasuke sighed and went to get a bucket and towel to soak up the puddle of blood.

---------------------

By the next day Naruto was as close to normal as Sasuke could remember, except he was paler than ever, and he and his two clones worked the house with a renewed vigor that- that is until one started to twitch violently and stopped scrubbing the kitchen floor.

"Nabeshin, I presume," Sasuke commented over a bowl of rice. The clone took a deep breath and made the signs of a henge. He poofed, and in the clones place was a tall dark haired man with dark eyes and the usual Uchiha complexion. Sasuke had seen him before. He dropped his sticks and stared at him in shock. It was a relative of his, an Uchiha, alive, looking at him.

Nabeshin grimaced, running a hand through his now black hair as he pulled out Naruto's chair and sat in it. "out of the two clones, this one had a little more juice in it, but I won't be able to do much else."

Sasuke couldn't do much but stare.

"Listen Sasuke, there's something important that I need to tell you, something no one else will, not even Naruto."

"What?" Sasuke straightened in his seat, the shock lifting.

Nabeshin glanced at the newspaper windows darkly and rubbed his face. "I suppose you were too young to be aware of the trouble we Uchiha's were in."

"What trouble?" he was breaking out into a sweat. Nabeshin leaned back in the seat, tapping a finger against the kitchen table.

"I won't get too deep into it- don't want to overwhelm you with too much information. But let me say that the Uchiha were being blamed for many unfortunate things happening in Konoha, especially the Kyuubi attack.."

"What?! I thought that the Kyuubi was considered a natural occurrence caused by human war, death, and violence."

Nabeshin shrugged. "That was never proven to be a complete fact. Whether it was true or not, we were blamed, gathered up, and sent here, to the Uchiha compound, which you have come so dearly to love."

It was a cold sweat now, and he couldn't bother to wipe his brow.

"It became increasingly clear, that this village we helped establish was plotting our annihilation. So your father and many of the other Uchiha elders began to device a rebellion."

Sasuke felt the blood drain from his face- Nabeshin apparently saw it too.

"We were not going to lay down and die, Sasuke. And apparently none of us had to. Your brother no doubt did this village's dirty work. He had no true loyalty to the Uchiha's, a shame really."

"But...he said it was to test his limits..." That's what Itachi had told him, when he had begged for a reason. Nabeshin raised a brow.

"Did he? Huh...It curious that the only one he left alive was you... But what matters Sasuke, is that this village had betrayed everyone you love, taken you whole life from you, and pretended to have nothing to do with it." Nabeshin's face seemed distorted around the reddish smoke. If he said anything more, Sasuke heard nothing beyond the pounding in his ears. Sweat beaded down his temples and he felt both hot and cold.

The whole village was against him- them? How many of the other clans knew this- how many of his classmates had known this? Was the whole village in on it? Kakashi-sensei? Iruka-sensei? Naruto? He turned to see the blond at his side, face pale, eyes flitting nervously about, seeming unable to focus on anything in particular. Just standing there, too close.

His heart steadied. Naruto wouldn't know anything about that kind of stuff- he had been holed up in his apartment for years. He rubbed his shaking hands and stared at Nabeshin, who was staring back.

"I suppose that's what my father meant, by avenging the clan." he missed Naruto's flinch. "But that makes this whole village my enemy, doesn't it?"

"Yes," Nabeshin leaned forward and rested his head on his hand. "But don't be too hasty Sasuke. Do nothing until I tell you. There is...there is someone powerful who may return to help you. But not now, you aren't nearly strong enough. You don't even have you mangekyou yet."

'What is that?" He felt calmer now, less ready to burst, and it wasn't because of Nabeshin's words, but because Naruto was clearly standing by him in an attempt to comfort him, or else he would be in their room. His world may be crashing down around him, but Naruto was a constant.

"I'll show you everything later, but learning the mangekyou will take much time. Right now, you've got a Chunin Exam to worry about."

The Chunin Exam...he had nearly forgotten that. Suddenly Nabeshin's clone popped, beside him Naruto staggered and crashed into the kitchen counter, gripping the edges to keep himself upright. Strangely enough, he saw Naruto's blue eyes flash red several times like a beacon light before he seemed to get a grip on himself. He looked at him, miserable blue eyes waiting. _What now, Sasuke?_ They seemed to say.

"Come on, we need to make some traps for the Exam."

---------------

Late that evening, Sasuke left Naruto briefly to gather some sedatives he knew had been left behind at the infirmary, chilled by the brown stains that smeared the dirty halls and rooms. The people of Konoha may have removed the bodies, but the stains remained. He found a broken cabinet full of sleeping pills and took them. It was obvious Naruto was plagued by nightmares and was getting little sleep; his hands constantly shook, a sign of exhaustion. Clearly what he needed was a full day of uninterrupted sleep.

"Take these," he told the blond, who was finishing up a pile of exploding tags. Naruto stared at the three pills, face turning gray at the sight of them. "It's not poison," Sasuke assured, rolling his eyes. "You need to get some real sleep. This'll put you out for hours and won't dream or have nightmares. I'm sure of it."

Naruto wrung his fingers nervously before taking the pills and downing them with the glass of water. Satisfied, Sasuke began to gather the exploding tags and sort them. Tomorrow he would take their katanas to the nearest blacksmith and get them sharpened, along with all their kunai. He glanced back at Naruto ten minutes later to see the blond out cold, bent over with his face in the carpet, unmoving.

"Finally," he muttered, turning the blond on his side and covering his with an extra blanket. He too then went to bed, staring at the newspapered window, picking out random words and alternately dwelling on what his relative had told him. Soon he too fell asleep.

--------

In the doorway Nabeshin stood, watching the third living Uchiha rest, hope rising with him, and fading as he looked at the other lying in the corner. He didn't know how Sasuke tolerated looking Naruto in the eyes, those large round beacons of red light that threatened to suck him in and devour him. Nabeshin shuddered. Clearly Sasuke saw something different, something weak and controllable. Sasuke hadn't seen the demonic face Naruto had given him from under the table.

Nabeshin moved from the room and headed down the stairs, coming across Fukaku's wife, who moved down the hall, mouth wide open in a silent howl.

"What's the matter with you?" he asked as he passed her, not bothering to wait for a reply as he approached a door. Drifting through, he entered a dark room, immediately spotting Uchiha Fukaku sitting in front of a table. The former leader of the Uchiha looked at him.

"You," he said in a familiar, cold voice.

"Me," Nabeshin smiled. "Uchiha resurrected."

-------------

"Heyyyy. Sakuuura."

Sakura sighed and stuck her head out of her window, seeing Ino and her Team below.

"What?" she called, feeling exasperation. She'd been meditating for the last hour and a half, centering her chakra.

"Geez! No 'Hey Ino, how've you been?'" The blond shook her head. "You're becoming more like Sasuke-kun every time I see you."

"I'm leaving," Shikamaru informed dully, and turned to go, except that Ino grabbed his shirt without bothering to look at him.

"Hey Sakura, are you going to be in the Exam? You know about that, right?"

Sakura glanced back at the papers on her dresser. She hadn't even hesitated to sign them- this Exam would be her moment to shine, to prove that she was worthy of their notice.

"Yeah, we're going. You too, right?"

Ino grinned. "Yep. See you there, yeah?"

Sakura nodded, watching them walk away. She then shut the window and sat back onto her bed. Things were going to be different.

**TBC**

**Sorry for any typos**


	14. Chapter 14

Disclaimer: Naruto does not belong to Kirsdarkenvar

**Once again, anything that goes completely to canon, I will _try_ to brush over. But if it's different, well, you'll know.**

**Chapter Fourteen**

"Naruto," the voice called to him, Sasuke's voice, and a hand was on his shoulder. "Naruto, wake up."

He took a deep breath through his nose, struggled to open his eyes, but everything felt so heavy, a clearly sluggish feeling, and he was actually...comfortable? His lids obeyed his command, finally opening, and the familiar gloom of the room greeted him. Sasuke was kneeling beside him, looking impatient, another familiar thing, as he knew that Sasuke spent most of his time being impatient. He blinked at the Uchiha while he gained his bearings. He had been asleep...Never before had he felt so utterly relaxed, content- never had he slept so...uninterrupted. He got his arms under him and pushed himself into a sitting position, questions running through his head. How long had he slept? Did the sleeping pills really do that? And where could he get more?

"Come on, get up," Sasuke grabbed his upper arms and pulled him to his feet. "The Exam starts in three hours."

Naruto stood on wobbly feet as his brain processed Sasuke's words. Today was the Exam? But that had been a full day away! As if reading his thoughts, Sasuke shook his head in chagrin. "You slept through all of the evening before yesterday, all the way to now. I think I might have given you too much." He had the grace to look a bit apologetic.

Naruto rubbed his face and stumbled toward the door. _Drowsy_, he thought suddenly. He felt drowsy- and yet, at the same time, satisfied. He had never felt that way before, even _They_ were a gentle murmur in the back of his mind, as if _They_ too had gotten some rest as well. Perhaps the sleep had tempered _Their_ rage?

After taking a much needed shower, he made two clones for the morning cleaning while Sasuke made a meal, making quick but thorough work of the house. It was while he was washing their clothes that he stopped to examine his hands. Usually there was a fine tremor that constantly ran through them, but there was none today- they were bony, but steady. He felt...well.

When he returned to the kitchen Sasuke had a bowl of soup waiting for him and he slowly slurped it down in silence.

"Is Nabeshin here?" Sasuke asked after fifteen minutes of quiet. Naruto glanced around, but he did not see the ghost in the immediate area and shook his head, feeling the soup settle down comfortably in his stomach, another startling occurrence. It was amazing what good sleep did to him. Soon after they were stashing bombs, strapping kunai in their holsters, and tightening the straps on their katana; Sasuke moved with barely pent up energy, jerky and eager.

"I have to talk to my father before we leave," Sasuke said when they were all finished, causing Naruto to freeze. He looked at the Uchiha and shook his head. Sasuke stiffened. "Why? Are you frightened of a ghost?" he moved toward the blond. "What can he do to you?"

Naruto pursed his lips. "I don't like him," he stated flatly, moving toward the bedroom door as Sasuke sneered.

"You don't like _anyone_, Naruto. What makes my father any different?"

Naruto opened the door and headed down the stairs. "He sees me," he muttered.

"I _want_ to talk to him Naruto," Sasuke called with more force, all but demanding his obedience. He hated that tone, that tone meant pain, but he paused and looked back up at him, standing at the top of the stairs, lips pursed and dark eyes glowing.

"He's dead Sasuke," he replied, and instantly regretted his words.

Sasuke was in his face before he could see him move. _"_Don't_ tell me what I already know!" _he hissed, backing Naruto up against the door, pointing a finger in his face. "You know, suddenly I get the feeling that you're keeping something from me." His black eyes became wild, unknown emotions flashing about them. "You _are_, aren't you?" He grabbed the front of Naruto sweater as the blond tried to shy away from him, soup now rumbling in his stomach. He shook his head, pressing against the door, heart pounding in his ears, waiting for Sasuke's other fist to descend upon him at any moment. Sasuke remained there, imposing, threatening, but the crazed look in his eyes faded a bit.

"I hope you aren't," he said in the heavy quiet of the house. "It's just you and me, Naruto. No one else means us any good." He released his sweater after a moment.

Naruto wrung his fingers and smoothed down his hood.

_Perspective_.

The word popped into his head, not his, not _Theirs, _but there nonetheless, like a flashing neon billboard. Perspective. He had grown up with the knowledge of the cruelty aimed at him, that others wanted to hurt him, kill him. The world was not his friend, the world was not safe. Sasuke hadn't known this- Sasuke had been living in an illusion, one so strong that the dead had to come and reveal it to him. It was distressing, reasonably so, and so he nodded at the Uchiha, smoothed down his hood, and headed reluctantly for the one room he didn't go in and opened the door.

To his surprise, sitting in the room alongside Fugaku was Nabeshin, almost invisible in the deep gloom. He moved aside so Sasuke could stand in the doorway, and watched as the young Uchiha stared grimly at the wooden floor. Fugaku lifted his head, angry cold eyes falling on his living son. Nabeshin's eyes darted between the two of them, a frown growing on his face.

"Aren't you going to say something?" he asked.

The older man sent him a scathing look, turned to Naruto and sneered.

"Why did you bring him here? What lies will you put in my mouth now?" the ghost asked him, and Naruto glanced nervously at Sasuke, whose eyes were darting between him and the area where his father sat. Nabeshin sent him an intrigued look, like the idea of Naruto lying had never occurred to him. Naruto lowered his eyes and stared at the floor- it was best not to respond to anything. But this was giving him a headache, one blooming right behind his right eye.

"I told Sasuke about our clan, Fugaku-sama. What is it you want him to do?" Nabeshin's voice cut softly through the gloom.

"What can he do? He is weak."

Naruto looked up from under his bangs, spying the glare Nabeshin was sending Fugaku's way.

"I can teach him, I can show him the clan's secrets."

Fugaku turned angry eyes to the other ghost.

"_You_? You who did not achieve the Mangekyou?"

"Achieve?" Nabeshin spat. "Who told you that? I _chose_ not to achieve it, because I loved more! Unlike you, and many others I can name!"

"What's going on?" Sasuke murmured in question. "Has he said anything?"

"How dare you speak to me this way," Fugaku was snarling, getting to his feet. Naruto shrank back a bit.

"I can speak however I want!" Nabeshin shouted, standing up as well. "What are _you_ going to do about it? Kill me? You've already done that!"

Fugaku was looking downright murderous. "Itachi-"

Nabeshin cut him off, pointing a finger in his face. "If you had kept a more _fatherly_ eye on your son, none of this would have happened! You've killed us all." The angry ghost charged toward the wall, paused and glared back at the man. "I'll make Sasuke more powerful than Itachi could ever imagine. I know the ways, and I know where and _who_ to get help from." As he began to disappear into the wall, Fugaku's last words stopped him.

"I doubt you'll get very far. I know you've been getting power from this demon. Don't forget they devour souls." Nabeshin glared at him, but he looked at Naruto for a second, expression unreadable, before disappearing completely into the wall.

"Naruto," Sasuke's hand gripped his arm, making the blond jump. He turned and looked at his questioning eyes.

"Nabeshin was fighting with your father," he whispered, easing back from the doorway, but not getting far with Sasuke's grip on his arm.

"Nabeshin was in there? Why? What were they fighting about?"

Naruto hesitated. Should he lie? Which would cause him less pain? He didn't think it would matter much- he already couldn't feel his arm. But no answer would lead to more questions, as things seemed to go with Sasuke, so there wasn't much of a choice. Life is pain.

"Nabeshin wants to train you in this mangekyou sharingan, and your father feels he is...unqualified."

Sasuke released his arm abruptly; Naruto took that moments' reprieve to twiddle his fingers as circulation returned. Sasuke stared into the gloom of the room, eyes silent and concerned.

"He can try, but I doubt he'll succeed," Fugaku's voice broke the silence, and Naruto looked up at the resignation in his voice. The ghost was staring at Sasuke, and his words came out in browns and grays. "The glory of the Uchiha is dead." 'Dead' floated into the air, mottled brown and purple, drifting toward them. Naruto blanched and backed up so fast that he collided with the hallway wall.

Words. He was seeing words, something that only happened the week of his birthday. _They_ murmured to life, having been gentle whispers in the back of his mind since he had awakened. But now... The words floated toward Sasuke's face as he gazed obliviously into the room, unaware of his terror, unaware of the words drifting toward his face. Would they hurt him? Naruto leaped forward, grabbing the Uchiha and yanking him backwards. Sasuke was so startled that he tripped over his foot, crashing into Naruto and making them both tumble into the hall.

"The hell?!" Sasuke exclaimed, but Naruto was already crawling through the living room and toward the stairs. A shadow shifted in his peripherals, and Naruto shied away from it, stumbling up the stairs and into their room. He grabbed their packs and pulled on his sweater- the black one that Kaori had given him, pulling the hood down over most of his face.

"What the hell was that?" Sasuke's voice boomed into his ears, _Their _murmuring became louder. Naruto covered his ears. "Naruto." hands grabbed his face and turned it. He opened his eyes to Sasuke's face. "What. Is. The. Matter?"

"Words," he gasped. "Bad words." He pulled his head from Sasuke's hands and pulled the pack onto his back. "Words hurt..." he whispered. Standing in the room, staring at Sasuke's bare feet. "Words hurt."

He moved down the stairs and toward the door- Sasuke followed him out.

**---------------------**

Sakura waited patiently at the bridge, leaning silently against the railing, watching villagers go by. Sasuke and Naruto were late, which was to no surprise. Her pink hair was pulled back in a tight ponytail, her legs strapped with kunai,hands wrapped in fingerless leather gloves, her hitai-ate strapped across her forehead. She rubbed the back of her neck, kneading her muscles and twisting her head from side to side. Though her demeanor was calm outwardly, inside she was quaking with excitement and apprehension. For the last month she had been training her sorry ass off, tired of being the weak, shallow, spectator in her Team, tired of feeling like she didn't belong. She'd had nice long talks with Kakashi-sensei over the state of her position in the Team, and he had been very supportive of bettering her as a kunoichi, though he had often cautioned her not to 'lose herself' in her quest for acceptance

The scuff of sandals on the cobbled pavement caused her to turn her head, spying both boys approaching. Naruto's head was down, only blond strands visible beyond his dark hood, and he was walking so close to Sasuke that their shoulders were almost touching. Sasuke's face was worrisome; he was pale, lips drawn in a flat white line- he didn't look as happy or eager as Sakura had imagined he would today. Something must have happened between them- she was aware that both boys existed in a world of their own creation, a world she wanted to be a part of.

The Uchiha's dark eyes fell on her, and paused, surprise passing over his pale features.

"You look different," he commented, and she resisted the urge to blush. No more of that, those actions tended to alienate her from them.

She nodded. "Hey," she greeted shortly and stepped away from the rail. Sasuke was still staring at her, and for once he didn't look annoyed. This was good. "You got your paperwork?"

Sasuke lifted a hand, holding both boy's registration papers. She glanced at the blond- he hadn't moved or looked up. Not surprising. "Cool," she replied, looking back at the Uchiha. "We should head to the Academy- that's where we're supposed to meet." She turned and headed for the building, feeling Sasuke's eyes on her. She smirked. Check and Mate.

--------------

"Hey Naruto?"

Naruto turned his head, staring down at Nabeshin's feet, not bothering to look up at the ghost as they stopped in front of the Academy. He dared not look up right now. _They _were moving about his mind like an agitated hive, random words and expressions coming and going too quickly for him to process- it was like the never ending shattering of glass, always falling but never landing- never settling. He didn't know what had set _Them_ off, perhaps it was the words, or Fugaku's anger- or Nabeshin's.

"I just thought you and Sasuke would like to know about the Exams. Can you give me a body so I can speak to you both?" Naruto looked up at the ghost quickly, taking in his unhappy face. Why couldn't he borrow a clone from Sasuke? Sasuke knew how to do the Kage Bunshin too. He looked over at the Uchiha, who was taking in the few other ninja heading into the building. He nudged him with his elbow, causing the boy to look at him.

"Nabeshin wants to talk...privately."

Sasuke nodded and they both moved from the area and walked around a corner, away from general view. Making a bunshin, he glared sullenly as the clone shuddered and twitched as Nabeshin stepped into it. This time he had made sure to gather more chakra than usual for this clone,so it could stick around longer. He watched as its face broke into a small smile as it turned to them.

"I've been checking out the Exam, and I thought you both should know what they have in store for you." he glanced around then knelt in the dirt. Sasuke followed suit, but Naruto chose to remain standing- he had a feeling someone was watching him- his eyes darted around, expecting to find the prying hateful eyes of a villager. It wouldn't be long now, soon they would be announcing his name, villagers would be after him more. "The first part of the exam will be a written test, and from what I saw, the questions are a bitch. Seriously, I doubt many of the genin will even know the answers. I'm sure there's something they expect you to do, but everyone's being very tight-lipped about it, so I couldn't find anything out. My suggestion is -you cheat." He waved his hand at Sasuke's expression, though Naruto couldn't see it from where he was standing. "Don't give me that look, there's no shame in cheating. After all, you're a ninja, not a samurai." He gave a small chuckle, red puffs coming from his mouth. "But the second part of the test will be-"

"Sasuke? Naruto?" Sakura appeared around the corner, eyes curious as she stopped before them. "You guys should see..." Her voice drifted off as the Nabeshin clone straightened up and grinned at her. She leaned away, her eyes darting from him to Sasuke. "Naruto, what's wrong with your clone? It's really-uh- creepy."

Nabeshin scowled at her and simply walked away. Sakura stared after him before looking at them.

"What did you make a clone for Naruto?"

"Reconnaissance," Sasuke replied. "What did you want us to see?"

"There's a fight going on over a door we're supposed to find. Come see."

They followed her into the building where several genin stood about, a few from different villages, all looking at least a year older than the three of them. They lingered nervously around a door as a boy in a vibrant green spandex-like suit beseeched the chuunin by the door to let him in. "Please? My team and I really need to take this test." He moved toward the chuunin but was shoved back roughly by the older ninja.

"Go home kid," the chuunin drawled condescendingly. "This is for you own good. You're not ready."

A girl with buns on the top of her head moved forward and helped the green clad boy up, a scowl on her face.

"Aren't we supposed to go to 301?" Sakura murmured to Sasuke. "301 is one floor up, I think. That one is 205."

"Genjutsu," Sasuke replied. Naruto rubbed his aching eyes and watched behind his hair as another unknown Team wandered in, took a look at the door, and sneered.

"That's the wrong door, dick-face."

The green boy turned to them and grinned widely, as if he hadn't been pushed around. "I knew that," he gave a thumbs up. As the other lingerers began to head for the stairs, a rather plain boy with dark brown hair, heavy lidded eyes, and regular ninja attire approached Team Seven. Naruto recognized him immediately, even though his appearance had changed.

"Where was I? Oh yes, the second task after the written test will be a survival test. It'll take place in the Forest of Death, a nasty place," as he spoke more rusted puffs came from his mouth. Nabeshin with a henge.

"Who are you?" Sakura asked, eyes narrowed.

"He's with us," Sasuke told her and moved toward the stairs.

Naruto glanced back, eyes darting about the area, feeling eyes on him again. His mind was a cacophony, _They _were no help at all.

"Coming Naruto?" Nabeshin smiled at him and gestured for him to follow them up the stairs. Sasuke, having just noticed that Naruto was not at his side, looked down at him and gestured for him to follow, waiting on the stairs until Naruto was at his side.

---------

As they approached the hallway leading to 301, Nabeshin stopped them. "I'll be around when I can," he assured, patting Sasuke's shoulder. "Stay safe in the meantime, eh?"

Sasuke stared at him a moment. This person, this clone, this ghost, was family. He was an Uchiha, another Uchiha in which he had thought never to see again. He was here, talking to Sasuke, giving him advice and his concern... Could he trust Nabeshin? He had told Naruto that it was just them two of them- but what about the ghost? Where did he fit into the scheme of things? _Could_ he be trusted? Sasuke nodded, glancing at Naruto, who seemed to be staring at the ground, but Sasuke could see the pale blue gleam of an eye focused on the ghost. He was relieved to see that the crazy had left his eyes, but there was another emotion that had taken its place, what looked like muted anger towards the ghost. It made him wonder, made him worry. "Okay," Sasuke assured, nodding at Nabeshin and gesturing for the others to follow. Naruto moved immediately, but Sakura hesitated, frowning back at Nabeshin as he left the stairs and rounded the corner, disappearing from view.

"Hey Sasuke," she called after him, and he resisted the urge to scowl. Sakura had been less annoying since they had returned from Wave Country, less talkative, which had been good. He didn't care for her to be observant now.

Before she could say more, they spotted Kakashi-sensei, standing beside the door of 301, looking pleased.

'You're all here. I trust you all thought carefully about this," his eye focused on Sasuke and Naruto. Sasuke nodded, gaze moving toward the door. "Sakura?" his eye moved to the kunoichi-Sasuke saw a look of pride in his eye, and saw her smile back at the jounin confidently. Yes, something was distinctly different about her.

Kakashi-sensei moved from the doorway, opening it for them. As he and Naruto passed through, Kakashi-sensei dropped a hand on the blond's shoulder, making the hooded boy jump and flinch, looking up at the man as he tried to shy away, but the jounin's grip was too strong.

"Watch over them, will you Naruto?"

Sasuke fought to keep the surprise off of his face. Naruto, watch over them? He was barely sane ninety percent of the time! But Naruto nodded, if only to get the jounin to release him. Kakashi-sensei removed his hand, and they entered the room, pausing briefly as they took in all the genin that crowded the room. Grass-nin, sand-nin, ninja from stone, mist, lightening, and several others they couldn't identify on the spot. Sasuke's eyes zeroed in on the sand-nin with the red hair, who was standing beside his Teammates. The red-head turned toward them from where he stood, green eyes zeroing on Naruto, who was staring at the ground.

"Sakura!" Sasuke turned to see Team Ten approaching, Yamanaka Ino at the head. She came over to Sakura and gave her a once over, a slight frown on her face. "You look different. Hiding your forehead again?" she asked, and the pink girl gave a shrug and said nothing, which caused a few eyebrows to raise. Usually at this point, they would be tossing insults at one another, but Sakura's facial expression was leaning heavily on the side of disinterest.

Ino turned and smiled at the boys. "Hey Sasuke-kun...Naruto." Sasuke nodded at her, his eyes moving to Nara Shikamaru, whose dark eyes were focused on Naruto. He remembered that Shikamaru had always been a bit too interested in Naruto ever since that day in the bathroom. Several times he had turned in his seat at the Academy to spy the shadow user watching Naruto from the back of the room.

"Hey Uzumaki," he greeted in his lazy voice, and the hooded blond lifted his head, blue eyes peering beyond his bangs at the other boy.

Someone gave a shout, and Team Eight approached, Inuzuka Kiba at the fore, his dark eyes dancing with excitement, mouth wide open in a grin.

"Alright! Everyone's here. Awesome!" he stopped in front of them. "Look at all these bastards- they aren't so tough looking."

"Don't be ridiculous," Sakura snapped. "Everyone here is as good as us or better. We have to be very careful about this."

Hyuuga Hinata nodded nervously from her place beside Aburame Shino. For some reason she reminded Sasuke of Naruto, with her worried eyes and nervous gestures. He never had much to do with the Hyuuga's- the Uchiha clan had looked down upon their distant relations and he hadn't been allowed to play with them.

"You're quite right," an unfamiliar voice agreed, and a taller boy with gray hair and round glasses walked over to them He wore standard ninja attire, and was a leaf-nin, so his presence did not alarm the group, except for Naruto, who smoothed down his hood and did not look up. "You guys better watch what you say from now on. Look," he jerked his head towards all the other ninja in the room, and many of them were glaring at the Leaf group. "Everyone here are representing their village, so they're the top rookies of their villages."

Kiba snorted. "This Exam is going to be easy." Akamaru yipped happily in his arms.

The leaf-nin grinned. "Oh, I wouldn't be too sure about that. This is my seventh time taking this test, and I have yet to pass."

Seventh time? Either the Exams were very difficult or this gray haired genin was a poor ninja.

"Who are you?" he addressed, since no one else had bothered to ask his name and he hadn't volunteered it.

"Oh, sorry about that. I'm Yakushi Kabuto," he grinned. "If you need to know anything about the other contestants, I'm your man." He pulled a pack of cards out of his pants leg pocket. "These cards have information about everyone here, via my chakra. Anyone want to know anything?"

"Aw, who cares," Kiba grinned. "We're going to kick their asses anyway."

Yakushi looked amused. "You think so?" He shuffled the deck and pulled out a card. "Chew on this then. The genin from Sunagakura have completed eight C-rank missions and one B-rank. It is said that the youngest, Gaara, has come from every mission without a scratch. He's deadly, and won't hesitate to kill you in battle." Kiba scowled, but shut up. "The young miss is right, everyone here is the best that their villages have to offer. You should never underestimate your opponents." His eyes were serious behind the glasses.

"Sound advice," Shino agreed with a small nod, his face expressionless behind the dark shades.

Sasuke felt eyes on him, and he turned his head to see the sand siblings watching him and Naruto. The sandy-haired girl looked hostile but puzzled, as if she didn't understand what about them seemed to capture her red-headed brothers attention. Sasuke glanced down at his side, and was startled to see that Naruto's hand was slightly behind his back, stroking the hilt of his katana methodically. His usually bowed head was up, staring at Gaara.

Sasuke nudged him with his elbow, and for a moment there was no reaction, then Naruto's head turned toward him. His pale blue eyes were wide, but not with fear, but with an awareness Sasuke clearly remembered. That day on the bedroom floor. The pupils in his eyes were small and thin, and he felt that more than just Naruto was looking at him. His lips turned up, and a smile appeared, hollow- yet cruel. That smile turned back to the sand-nins, and Gaara unfolded his arms, straightening, his shadowed eyes narrowing.

"'Besides the Sand-nins, what of the other villages. Anyone else we should know about?" Sakura was asking.

Kabuto seemed to think for a moment. "Well, I can't say much for the Village of Hidden Sound, because it was created last year, but be careful of Stone, because of the war we had with them, and Mist, because they've always been sneaky, despite their size."

Sasuke pinched Naruto's arm, making the blond jump, turning wounded eyes on him. That was better- that was Naruto. Suddenly the blond stiffened, eyes darting toward the group. Sasuke turned to see one of the foreign genin rush Yakushi, throwing a punch but missing. Yakushi jerked his head back, eyes startled just as the lenses in his glasses frames cracked. Sasuke unsheathed his katana but left it dangling in one hand, eyes darting from the genin who had attacked Yakushi, to his two teammates, who stood nearby, leering at them. The sound of vomiting caught his attention, and he saw that Yakushi was making a mess on the floor, Ino and Kiba at his side. Sasuke frowned. He was sure that the guy had dodged that attack, so why had his glasses broken? Why was he sick?

"Put this on your cards: Hidden Sound Ninja's, definitely going to be chuunin." The sound- nin that spoke had spiky black hair, and guards on the sides of his face. The one that had attacked Yakushi had half of his face and his right eye covered by a bandage, and what looked like a mound of straw on his back- most likely hiding a weapon. The last member of the team was a girl, similarly dressed like the others, with thick long dark hair and hostile eyes. They chuckled at Yakushi, then seemed to spot him with his katana unsheathed.

"Oh this one thinks he's tough," the bandaged one sneered, but before he could go any farther there was a boom, and dust filled the room, along with a new, older voice.

"Quiet down, you worthless brats. This is not a playground."

Once the smoke cleared, it revealed a group of about eleven people, with a man wearing a bandanna at the fore, his face littered with scars. "Anyone caught fighting will be disqualified," he informed, intense eyes roaming about the room and falling on them. Sasuke quietly sheathed his blade, while the sound-nin scowled and moved away from them. "Alright, everyone follow me, shut up, and listen to me closely because I do _not_ like to repeat myself."

The large group of genin followed the man and his cohorts into a classroom. At the front stood two chuunin, one merely standing there, eyes surveying the group, another holding a white box.

"Everyone go up and pick a number, then sit in the seat with that number. No trading, or you're out of here," the scarred man ordered. "Get to it."

There was brief jostling to get to the box first, but order restored itself quite quickly in a line. Sasuke glanced back and saw that the front of the desks were numbered, his mouth turning down as he glanced back at Naruto, whose face was turning slightly gray, which was to no surprise- Naruto tended to figure things out long before he did.

"_Don't _freak out," he cautioned, not wanting a replay of what had happened at the Academy earlier that year. "This is only temporary, and we'll still be in the same room. This test isn't a big deal unless you make it, understand?"

Sakura, who was standing next to the hunched blond, turned curious eyes on him, a slight frown as she turned her eyes to the back of Naruto's head. Naruto smoothed down his hood with shaking fingers nodding, and Sasuke suppressed a sigh of relief. No break-downs today.

He pulled out a slip with the number seventeen on it, while Naruto picked one with a number eight, Sakura a number ten. It put him two rows behind Naruto, and Sakura in the row between them to his right. Sitting next to Naruto was Hyuuga Hinata, who looked almost as nervous as Naruto, so both of them had their heads bowed. It would have been so funny if wasn't so pathetic. A chuunin passed a pile of papers at the end of the row and the genin moved them down the line. Sasuke took a paper and passed it on, glancing at Naruto, who seemed even more hunched than before.

The man introduced himself as Morino Ibiki, Head of the Torture and Interrogation Squad (he actually saw Naruto drop his head in his hands at this).and began to recite the rules of the Exam, which turned out pretty grim. "Listen carefully, as I don't like to repeat myself. There are ten questions, one point is taken away for each one you get incorrect. This is a Team event, so your scores will be combined. Those who are caught cheating, will lose _two_ points for each offense. Lose all your points, and your _whole_ Team fails." His dark eyes roamed over their faces in malicious delight. "Alright, you have an hour, get to it."

Sasuke turned the sheet of paper over and stared down at the questions. The first one was a complicated cryptogram, something that Sasuke was barely familiar with, while the others were advanced scenarios of battle plans and techniques he was having a hard time wrapping his mind around. He glanced up to survey the genin around them, and saw many faces staring down in consternation at the paper. Nabeshin had been right, some of these questions were all but impossible for a mere genin to know.

Sakura was frowning deeply, but her pencil began to move on the page slowly, with a lot of thoughtful pauses. He looked at Naruto, who had finally stopped fidgeting, and was now staring down at the paper, motionless. Was he stumped too? Then he lifted his pencil, and his hand began to move about the paper quickly. Naruto knew the answers.

Glancing at the chuunin on the sidelines watching, Sasuke make a quick decision, activating his sharingan and focusing on Naruto's hand, his own moving about the page as quickly as the hooded blond's. Around him he could hear the proctors calling out numbers one hundred and two, twenty-three, twenty-seven, forty-three, and the movement of bodies exiting the room.

Naruto's pencil stopped flowing about the paper after some time; Sasuke deactivated the sharingan and blinked down at his paper. The cryptogram had been ciphered, as a few of the other more precise questions, but he noticed that the rest of the questions on the battle tactics and scenarios had been answered by hypothesis' and theories. It made sense that Naruto would answer this way, one couldn't really know how a battle would go unless they had been in one, and of course, assuming that it would go exactly as that. They hadn't been in many of these situations that were written, so how would Naruto really know? How would many of the genin?

"Time's up," Ibiki informed, and Sasuke looked around to see many empty spaces where genin had sat, but Team Ten and Eight remained, along with Yakushi's team, the Sand Team, and many others he didn't know. "As I hope you have noticed, the tenth question is blank with instructions to wait for _my_ instructions. First, you must all decide whether to take the question or not."

"What happens if we don't?" Kiba asked in the stiff silence. Many of the genin were on edge.

"If you decline, you'll lose all your points and fail the test, and so will you teammates along with you. Now, if you choose to take it and answer it wrong, then you'll never be able to take this exam again." There were several swift intakes of breath, Sasuke was sure one of them was his own, and calmed himself as Inuzuka shouted that many other ninja have taken the test many times over- most likely thinking of Yakushi Kabuto.

"Well, you guys just got unlucky to have me this year. But look, I'm giving you a way out. Those who choose _not_ to take it, are free to try again next year.."

Sasuke leaned back his seat and mulled the options over. Both of them were bad, accept and get it wrong and one'll stay a genin forever. Not take it, and your Team is liable to kick your ass. Not that he had that to worry about, he was going to take the question, as would Naruto, he glanced up to see that the hooded blond was staring down at his paper still. No, Naruto was unlikely to ever forfeit, mainly because he wouldn't want to take the test next year. Sasuke's eyes narrowed. But would he purposefully get the answer wrong?

"Now, for the tenth question...Those who don't want to take it, say so now."

There was a moment of silence, then tension rising, then a leaf genin raised his hand, apologizing to his Teammates as they were forced to leave. Many others began to raise their hands, and Sasuke watched in disgust as they left the room. He glanced over at Sakura, who was also watching them go, her face pale and grim, but her eyes connected with him and she sent a confident smile his way. He nodded back reassuringly. He didn't know who this Sakura was, but he could definitely get used to her new, non-annoying personality.

Inuzuka jumped up suddenly, eyes bright with defiance, face twisted in a daring grin. "Come on, let's do this! I'm not scared, even if I get it wrong. A ninja's gotta take risks!" Several other genin grinned back at him, Ibiki looked both surprised and amused at the same. He glanced over at the chuunin sitting near him, both nodded, then he looked back at the room.

"Alright, good decisions. The seventy-eight still in this room, pass."

"The hell..?" The girl from Sand exclaimed "What about the tenth question?"

"There wasn't one," he grinned toothily at them. "Or more like, that was the tenth question. The first nine were to test your information gathering skills. It was based on the whole Team doing well, putting pressure on each member not to screw things up. And of course, since the questions were very hard for even the most exceptional genin to know, it was obvious that you all had to cheat. We even put two chuunin in that knew the answers."

Sasuke's eyes rose in surprise. He hadn't known there were others- he had just copied off of Naruto...

Ibiki lifted his gloved hands and removed the bandanna and hitai-ate from his head, revealing a bald, damaged skull, with burns, scars, and screw holes littered about it. Sasuke fought to keep his face blank as he surveyed the damage, and happened to see Naruto's head lift from staring at the table, but he didn't moved after that.

"Because," Ibiki was saying, "Sometimes the information is more important than life, and people will risks their lives to get it. And yours as well." He put the bandanna and hitai-ate back on, his dark expression clearing to the friendly one again. "Now as for the tenth question, the main reason for this test. There will come a time, and it _will_ come, that you will receive a mission where your opponent is a complete unknown. There is no way to avoid it. The ability to be courageous and survive any hardship is what it takes to be a chuunin. Those who make cowardly choices are nothing but trash, and don't deserve to advance to chuunin. Those who have chosen to take the question will go far- you will be able to survive any troubles you face in the future." Kiba was looking downright pleased with himself. "You all have passed the first exam, I wish you all luck."

"Yeah!" Kiba shouted, lifting a fist in the air. Sasuke rolled his eyes.

A body burst through a window, making him and about every genin jump- Naruto actually crouched down behind his table with his hand on his katana as the body flipped in front of Ibiki and revealed itself to be a dark-haired woman in fishnet and a trench coat.

"I'm the Examiner for the second test, Mitarashi Anko," she all but shouted. "Let's go!" They all stared at her in stunned silence, while Naruto slid back into his seat. "Follow me everyone."

"That wasn't necessary..." Ibiki muttered behind her, and she turned to him with a scowl.

"Seventy-eight? Are you getting soft? Twenty-six Teams! This test was way too easy."

Ibiki shrugged. "We got a lot of good potentials this year."

"Whatever," Mitarashi said with a shrug. "I'll cut them down by half," her lips turned up in a cruel grin, eyes filling with blood lust. "Alright children, follow me." she turned and went through a door, and they got up quickly to follow her.

Naruto was back at his side, but his eyes were on the Head of the Torture and Interrogation Squad as they passed, and the man turned and looked down at him. Sasuke didn't have to nudge the blond along- he never stopped moving, but his head was turning so he could continue to stare at the man as they exited the room. It was only when they were out of view that he looked forward, and his haunted eyes were full of too many unknown emotions, flickering between something or another, too fast for Sasuke to compute, and the blond shook his head and smoothed down his hood, eyelids fluttering rapidly, and Sasuke knew that his mind was in one of those messes again and it was unlikely that he would get much out of him until it passes.

Which he hoped was real soon.

--------------------

As the chuunin hopefuls exited the room, one in particular caught Morino Ibiki's eye, a small hooded kid walking next to who he believed was the last Uchiha. The child had a pale, hollow expression, an even fragile demeanor, as if he would break, but the red-rimmed blue eyes held a startling array of emotions, all of them flashing within a second of each other, completely chaotic, and all focused on his head- or the skin under it. Pain, fear, understanding, anticipation, expectation, apprehension, and several others coming and going within the moment it took the boy to reach the door. And it seemed that the Uchiha herded him out, almost like an agreeable mental patient, not having to touch him, but letting him know that if he didn't move there would be assistance. And then he was out the door, and Ibiki was left collecting papers and wondering who that kid was.

He couldn't see much beyond the hood, beyond pale skin, a few strands of blond hair, and pale blue eyes. He picked up a paper and noticed that there wasn't a name on it. He rolled his eyes at the stupid forgetfulness of adolescence, but paused when he noticed that every one of the questions had been neatly answered- so neatly in fact, that it was as if someone had typed out the answers, not handwritten them. The answers, for the most part, were correct, detailed, and precise, even if most of it was speculation. He picked up several papers and examined them, noticing that many of them said the exact same thing, but chopped up here and there. As a matter of fact, Uchiha Sasuke's paper mimicked this one down to the penmanship- though it wasn't as perfect. It seemed that many of the genin had copied off of this one person, who had deliberately left his or her name out.

Who..?

He looked up as someone approached, Hatake Kakashi and gave a nod.

"Which Team was yours?"

Hatake's eye crinkled. "Team Seven. Uchiha Sasuke, Haruno Sakura, and Uzumaki Naruto." His eye drifted to the papers in his hands. "Ah, I see you have Sasuke, and Naruto's papers. They pass?"

The name Uzumaki Naruto had been ringing around his head the moment it had left Hatake's mouth, a ring of utter familiarity, but he couldn't quite put his finger on it.

"Which child was Naruto?" he asked as Hatake leaned against a table lazily, eye roving over the broken window Anko had created.

"The hooded one." There were several children with hoods on, but somehow Ibiki knew exactly which one Hatake was referring to

Ibiki's eyes narrowed as he looked down at the boy's paper. "He forgot to put his name down..."

"No," Hatake replied. "He didn't. He never puts his name down."

**TBC**

**Recently I've gotten invitations to online yaoi festivals, and some have archived this story in their yaoi communities... After mulling over _why_ people still think this is a yaoi, I arrived at the conclusion that it is because I didn't put 'no slash' on the summary. I'll fix that. So once again, this is _not_ a slash/yaoi fic and there are no pairings for the characters.**

**On another thing, someone once asked if Kaori had been a self-insert...I laughed real hard at this, then wondered if many other people thought that too (which is when I stopped laughing.) To answer this question simply: NO. Kaori wore fishnet, and dark clothing, I'm guilty of wearing pink, orange- yes, _orange_, and lovely pastel colors. Sorry if that destroys any image of me.**


	15. Chapter 15

Disclaimer: Naruto does not belong to Kirsdarkenvar

_**Once again, like Wave, anything that is the same I will gloss over unless I intend to change it, which you will see is much. Also, this is all of the Forest of Death.**_

**The Ghost and the Darkness**

**Chapter Fifteen**

Sasuke frowned up at the sight that came to him once he and Naruto entered the area that the others had gone. In his mind, Sasuke had always imagined that Konoha Village was a small one- somewhere in his head he had thought that he had seen all of it. And then places like this showed up and he was left to wonder how much he really knew about the village he was born in. He had never seen Arena Forty-Four, with its humongous trees and ominous feel. Most of the area beyond the fence was shrouded in shadows, and a wild scent drifted through the air, a mixture of rotting vegetation and other plant life. Sasuke glanced over at Sakura and Naruto- the girl was gazing up at the trees apprehensively while Naruto gazed emptily at the dirt, eyes glazed over.

"This place is weird," Kiba commented, sniffing the air.

The woman named Anko grinned at him. "Yeah, and you're about to find out why its called the Forest of Death."

Kiba snorted. "Wow, real scary..." the sarcasm in his voice was thick. The woman grinned at him, her eyes twinkling maliciously, just before she tossed a kunai at the genin. Sasuke barely caught the movement, or when she appeared behind Inuzuka, licking the cut she had made on his face.

"Oh," she breathed. "You sound like one of the ones who die first."

Sasuke watched warily as a long haired man appeared behind her, wearing a yellow sun hat and a robe- like shirt that came to his elbows and reached his knees, splitting on the sides. Under that he wore a long sleeved purple shirt and pants. Tied around his waist was a thick purple rope wrapped like a bow at his back. Long black hair framed a pallid effeminate face with dark wide lips. Mitarashi spun a kunai at the Grass- nin just as a thick tongue slid from his mouth, hold her kunai.

"You're kunai..." the man said around the tongue, and Sasuke thought it was strange that he could speak so clearly around it.

"Thanks," Anko replied, looking back at him, seeming only slightly amused. "But don't sneak up behind me unless you're looking to die." She took the kunai from him, and Sasuke watched in slight disgust as the unnatural tongue slid back into the Grass-nin's mouth.

The Grass-nin smiled. "Sorry, I just get excited by the sight and scent of blood. And besides, you cut my hair," He turned and walked calmly back to his teammates, who were dressed similar to him, but both were bald. Sasuke glanced at Naruto again and was relieved to see that his teammate was watching the Grass-nin go. Good, the crazy seemed to have left him for a while, which meant he would be mostly functional. Naruto did good when he was mostly functional.

"Alright people, I'm going to pass out these Agreement forms to every one of you, but first let me explain the rules of this part of the Exam so that you know what you're getting into. After you've signed these, you'll head on over to that booth behind me and turn in your papers," she gestured over her shoulder at a booth where two chuunin sat. "This is Practice Area Forty- Four. In the middle of it is a tower and river that runs throughout the forested area. There are forty-four locked gates surrounding this area, and from the gates to the tower is about ten kilometers." She then proceeded to tell them the rules. Seventy-eight people, twenty-six Teams, each trying to get to the tower within a five day period. They had to use every survival tactic that they had learned thus far, and also assault other Teams that had either the Heaven Scroll or the Earth Scroll.

Sasuke had to hold back his excitement as she warned them of the dangers of man-eating beasts and poisonous insects. He glanced at his Team, to see Sakura looking grimly at the Agreement sheet that was handed to her after Mitarashi had spoken of the disqualifications. The girl's face was apprehensive, a look he was becoming familiar with, and as if she felt his eyes on her, she looked up from the sheet and gave a very confident smile. Sasuke nodded to her, then turned his attention to his blond companion, and was completely surprised to see that he was in the process of signing the paper. There was no fuss, no hesitation, just him promptly doing what Sasuke desired. Sakura handed her signed paper over to him, and he took Naruto's as well, sighing inwardly when he saw what he had put on the dotted line. If the characters there were supposed to be Naruto's name, then it said the blond had the writing ability of a slug, which he knew he didn't. Naruto had excellent penmanship, but seeing this reminded the Uchiha why he always signed official forms for Naruto- Naruto simply wouldn't put his name down otherwise. It was apparent that somewhere in his messed up head he was trying to not leave a paper trail, or anything with his name on it. But Sasuke had made sure all their papers needed for missions and such had been signed by him, though all their Academy work he had allowed Naruto to leave blank when it came to names: Iruka-sensei knew what belonged to the blond.

Sasuke quickly signed Naruto's name over the little mess he had put there, glancing at the blond wryly and noticed that his head was up, and he was staring over at the Sand-nins. The red-head was staring back. Sasuke stepped on Naruto's foot, making the hooded blond jump and turn accusing eyes on him.

"Stop looking over at him," Sasuke ordered. "You start to act funny whenever you do, and we don't need that right now."

Naruto replied by simply staring at the ground, which was fine with him. As long as he wasn't about to get in a fight with the Suna ninja. Sasuke glanced over at the booth, noticing that there was now a black tarp hanging off the side, concealing the genin that entered with their Agreement forms. It also stopped them all from seeing who was getting which type of scroll. He gestured for the others to follow him as he moved to the line, waiting a few minutes until they stepped into the shadows of the booth and handed over their Agreement forms. The chuunin looked them over absently before handing him a thick scroll with the characters _Heaven_ written across the seal. Sasuke placed it into his pack.

"Go ahead and wait at Gate Twelve," the chuunin said, eyes drifting past them to the other genin behind them. "It'll be about thirty minutes before the start of the second Exam. Make yourselves ready. Good luck."

They moved around the fence until they found a gate with their number on it, passing the creepy Grass-nins standing by Gate Fifteen. The long-tongued one lifted his head, black eyes peering at him from a pallid face. The wide mouth turned up in a smirk. Sasuke glared back until they were out of sight, his eyes falling on Naruto, who was giving him a rather flat look, very uncharacteristic of him.

"What?" he asked while they stopped at their gate. Sakura turned curious green eyes on them. She had been doing that lately, watching them interact- it made him feel like she was studying them for some reason. Naruto said nothing, instead staring at the dirt.

They waited.

Finally, after what he imagined _was_ thirty minutes, a chunin wandered over with a hand full of keys and lazily opened the gate, whistling all the while. "Good luck," he said between a whistle as he shut the Gate behind them. Sasuke watched the chunin as he left before turning to his Teammates.

"Alright. Let's go."

Immediately they leaped into the trees, heading for the tower. As they moved, he spoke.

"First, let's cover as much distance as possible. I want to cut our time in half and get to the tower as soon as possible."

"What about the scrolls? Which one do we even _have_?" Sakura asked on his left.

"We have the Heaven Scroll. Don't worry about getting a scroll- everyone is going the same direction as we are. It would be near impossible not to run into any of them. We can set traps while we wait and gather food and water in the meantime." He glanced over at Naruto, who was moving along on his right, face unreadable in its misery. Just because his face looked that way, didn't mean that was how he felt. Naruto could very well be enraged at this moment. "Make several of those clones to find out where all the others are positioned." Naruto glanced at him then made the seals for the kage bunshin. "Give them a good amount of chakra," Sasuke added quickly. He didn't want them disappearing for stupid things, like tripping over a root and smacking into a tree. Naruto frowned, and Sasuke felt a surge of chakra before three clones appeared, two by the blonde's side, and one behind him. They immediately took off in different directions, the one behind him going back the way they had come, one on his left taking off that way, while the one on his right disappeared into the gloom of the forest on his right. This was done without them missing a beat, without them stopping, and they continued on for some time. It was near impossible to tell how much time had passed, for they couldn't see the sky at all under such a thick canopy. He wondered what Nabeshin was doing, and if he had decided to enter the forest. The ghost had claimed to know someone who would help him learn the deeper workings of the Sharingan, especially the Mangekyou Sharingan, and he couldn't wait.

He glanced over to Naruto, seeing that he had a pinched look about him and he decided to stop them for an hour and maybe boost the blond's sugar levels a bit.

"Let's rest here for a bit," he suggested, and they stopped on a branch, dropping to the earth. Sasuke dug into his pack, about to hand Naruto a candybar, but realized that Sakura was crouching a few feet from him, and no doubt Naruto would be upset if she saw Sasuke handing the candybar to him in full view of her. Sasuke resisted the urge to roll his eyes as he positioned his body so that his back was to Naruto and shielding him from view of Sakura, who was digging in her own pack. Sasuke covertly fished out a candybar and snuck it behind him, his eyes on the pink haired girl. The bar left his hand and he heard Naruto trying to open it quietly, but he was being unsuccessful about it, so with a sigh, Sasuke spoke up.

"We should make a password with one another in case we get separated. A henge is so basic that its often overlooked, and if we get separated, we don't want the enemy taking our place." Sakura nodded, looking up from her canteen of water.

"That's a good idea. What do you suggest?"

Sasuke frowned. Where were the days when she would gush and coo, telling him how smart he was? Not that he missed those days, but Sakura's one-eighty was starting to make him suspicious.

"How about...The question is, who are my friends, and the answer will be, Sasuke and Naruto, or Sakura and Naruto, or any of the combinations according to whomever is receiving the question."

Sakura frowned, giving him a funny look. "Isn't that a little...simple?"

Sasuke smirked. "There's no point in doing something long-winded. Besi-"

Sasuke was cut off when a sudden explosion shook the area, lifting him off of the ground and sending him crashing into the foliage and rolling to a crouch. Dirt and dust blew about the area, causing him to shield his eyes even as he slipped his katana from his back. His eyes darted about in the haze, senses fully alert as he heard someone coughing, and out of the smoke Sakura staggered, coughing into her hand, eyes watering from the dust and grit in the air.

"Sas-" she choked out, but he leveled his blade at her.

"Password," he snapped.

For a second she looked startled, and then she nodded. "Sasuke and Naruto." Sasuke lowered the blade, eyes darting toward Naruto, who came staggering into view, face scrunched up in misery.

"Password!" Sasuke demanded.

"Sasuke and Sakura," Naruto muttered, and Sasuke felt instant rage fly through him as he tossed a kunai at the hooded blond's head. The Naruto imposter dodged, backing away a step before grinning at them, a creepy look for Naruto's bony face.

"What gave me away?" he asked. "I was sure I got the image and password right."

"You may have gotten his image right, but you got his voice wrong," Sakura replied warily holding up her kunai. "But that isn't much of a surprise since Naruto isn't much of a talker."

"Ah," the imposter gave a rather healthy laugh, a wild look appearing in those pale blue eyes. "But what if I _had_ gotten the voice correct? What then?"

Sasuke didn't care to be quizzed- he didn't even _want_ to answer this bastards' question. The only thing on his mind at the moment was- if this was the imposter, which he or she was, where the hell was Naruto?

"You got the answer wrong," Sasuke snapped, missing Sakura's puzzled frown. "You see, if asked, Naruto would most likely just say that _I_ was his friend. He would say nothing about Sakura." The color drained from the kunoichi's face, her lips thinning. "Where's Naruto?" he demanded.

The imposter grinned again and poofed. Once the smoke cleared, he revealed himself to be the long haired Grass- nin.

_Shit_!

----------------

Naruto shook his head rapidly, blinking back the lights that danced around his eyes as he sat up. He got to his feet and clutched his stomach as the chocolate bar tried to make its way back up his throat- he should have known better than to scarf something down like that so quickly. But he hadn't wanted the girl to see him eating it and had been forced to make quick work of it as Sasuke distracted her.

The food settled just as a shadow appeared above him, and he looked up to see a rather large purple snake coiling above him, approximately fifteen to twenty feet tall. He stared at it blankly, thinking briefly that snakes didn't normally come at this size, and that it must have been summoned by someone with a contract, when it snapped forward at a shocking speed. Naruto dodged out of the way, the snake crashing face first into the dirt, but it curled toward him, so that he had to dodge forward, toward it and under one of its massive coils. He had seen two fangs, which meant that despite its size, it was poisonous. One bite would be his death, either by poison alone or the simple size of the fangs. He raked his katana against its scaled flesh, unsurprised that the blade only glided against the scales. He simply didn't have the physical strength to cut into such a creature.

A coil tried to smash him as he moved around a tree and back into the coils of the snake, using its mass to his advantage. The snake kept curling about, trying to reveal him under its length, but he kept moving with its every move, until it finally caught the glint of his katana and struck quickly. Naruto jerked himself against one of its coils, its head managing to crush him against it while he rammed his katana into its bright yellow eye. The snake made of blast of hissing, yanking its head and his katana away, shaking it, body writhing about the forest, crashing into trees and crushing brush. Naruto was forced to momentarily curl up into a ball, making himself as small as possible as the snake's long body flapped and curled around and over him.

He quickly got to his feet as the snake seemed to gather its bearings, fixing its undamaged left eye on him. Naruto ran from the creature, performing the kage bunshin and releasing fifteen clones about him. The snake's eye darted about- it hesitated, looking at the clones; he had managed to lose himself in them, running up the side of a tree as his clones turned as one and performing a fire jutsu. One had leaped towards its face, aiming for the remaining eye, but the snake snatched that one out the air, crushing it as the others blew fire on its coils. It writhed again, and the clones ran from it, several were crushed in the attempt while others went into the trees and tried the jutsu on the snake again, catching it on the nose instead.

Naruto pulled out a shuriken and spun it at the snake's eye, dropping down from the tree before the shuriken could arrive, moving to his clones as the snake jerked away from the shuriken. It hit the reptile below its eye, but just close enough that it obviously hurt, and the snake was shaking it's head in rage. Another clone leaped haphazardly onto its head, grabbing onto the katana still lodged in its right eye and pulling. The snake rolled over, crushing the clone, but his katana was now free, and a remaining clone dashed forward as the snake was righting itself and snatched the blade, tossing it to him. Naruto snatched the katana out of the air and rushed at the creature.

The snake saw him and dashed forward, mouth opening wide, showing the soft pink inside. Naruto leaped right into the gaping mouth, no doubt startling the creature just as he gathered his strength and chakra and shoved his blade up into the roof of the snake's mouth.

Then the snake's head was going everywhere, the world was a whirlwind of browns and greens as the snake twisted and turned about. There was something that felt like a crash- Naruto didn't know, he had his eyes shut, holding onto his katana because his life depended on it, and he was actually safer in the snakes jaws than he was if he made an attempt to leave. But all this whirling about was reeking havoc on his stomach.

Finally everything stopped, and Naruto opened an eye cautiously and spotted dirt. The snake's head was lying on the ground, and he gratefully stepped off of its pink tongue and yanked the bloody blade from its mouth, staggering from its jaws in disgust as he realized his sweater was covered in thick red blood and saliva. His stomach heaved, and he emptied its chocolatey contents out onto the dirt. He leaned against a tree, his back to the reptile as he willed his stomach to settle, trying to ignore the stench coming off of himself. He wanted to crawl out of his own skin, and resisted the urge to vomit again. _They, _hummed in the back of his head, pleased but not satisfied. He knew that _They_ thought a snake summon was a dull kill. _They_ wanted _human_ blood, _They_ wanted human _screams_.

**MORE**, They sang. _**...**_

Naruto swallowed sourly and moved away from the tree, glancing at the dead snake and pondering its presence. He was surprised that there was genin in here somewhere that had a contract with a summon, but then, some of the genin had looked almost to be adults. Which genin had this reptile come from?

Naruto wiped his blade and sheathed it, averting his eyes from his arms and legs, which were coated in blood and slime. If he didn't look, he wouldn't feel sickened by it, wouldn't look for the nearest running water and bathe. If he breathed out of his mouth, he wouldn't smell it. He moved through the forest, leaving the giant reptile behind as he moved in the direction he imagined Sasuke and Sakura were. He wondered why they hadn't shown up to help him fight, and his only conclusion was that they were fighting as well.

He quickened his pace, but paused when he found his pack lying in some shrubs. He pulled it out, dusting small thin leaves and twigs from it, eagerly opening the flap and pulling out a small box of disinfectant wipes. He quickly pulled off the soiled black sweater and tossed it aside as he pulled out multiple wipes and began to clean his face, arms, and hair, taking careful strands of hair and wiping from scalp to tip. He cleaned beneath his fingernails, and used the rest on his pants legs, and was only satisfied when he couldn't smell the stench of the snake anymore.

He tossed the disinfectant wipes back into the small box and pulled out the spare grey sweater he had packed at the bottom of his pack, pulling it on quickly and pulling up the hood, smoothing it down over his forehead before pulling the pack onto his back. Sasuke had gotten a certain type of pack for both of them, one with loose straps so that it wouldn't hinder the drawing of their katana.

He was about to rush off toward his Teammates when he briefly remembered the black sweater, and he stopped to look back at the soiled thing. It was the one Kaori had given him, the one that Sasuke had made him wear. He continued to stare back at it for a moment, before simply moving on, leaving it where it lay, filthy and crumpled.

-----------

Sasuke didn't particularly like to admit when he was intimidated by something or someone, but he would have gladly gone up against anyone in this forest than this creepy Grass-nin. The girly-man was still grinning at them while he pulled out his scroll, the Earth Scroll, leering at them. "This is the one you desire right?" He lifted the scroll to his mouth, and Sasuke watched in disgust as that long tongue snaked out, wrapping around the scroll and pulling it into his mouth. He saw the Grass-nin's throat expand to accommodate the size of the scroll. Once it was successfully swallowed, the Grass-nin wiped his lips and looked at them.

"Now let's begin the fight for the scroll," the eyes sharpened. "_With our lives_."

A wave of pure killing intent roared over them, worse than he had ever felt, such terror and fear rolled over him, that he was sure that he was past dead, that there was a kunai buried in him somewhere. Sasuke staggered back, choking on his own fear, hearing someone empty their stomach, and vaguely wondering if it was him. The shocking terror faded a bit, and Sasuke was able to turn his eyes to Sakura, who was frozen on her knees, a puddle of vomit before her, eyes focused on the Grass-nin. In his hand he gripped his katana so tight that he could hear his joints cracking. _Movemovemove! _He shouted to himself, trying to will his body to stop shaking, to not run in terror like those villagers had when that Anbu had shown up. Yes, he was like those little villagers, weak and defenseless.

The Grass-nin was still grinning as he pulled out a kunai and tossed it at Sakura, who still hadn't moved. _Dammit! _They needed her! Sasuke turned his katana to the side of his leg, and the burning pain of the cut allowed his body to move. He grabbed Sakura and yanked her up into the canopy, using the thick leaves to mask his quick retreat. Sakura seemed to have gathered her bearings enough to follow him, and they both stopped a distance away, hiding behind the trunk of a tree.

"What is that-" Sakura began, sounding slightly hysterical.

"Shut up!" Sasuke hissed, cutting her off, eyes darted around the trunk in search for the Grass-nin. He hadn't wanted to run, running was for cowards, but this guy...something wasn't right about him. And where was Naruto? Sasuke swallowed, pushing away the multiple scenarios that flashed through his brain, all of them ending with Naruto being quite dead.

"Sasuke watch out!" Sakura cried behind him, and he spun around to see a rather large snake moving toward them. He shoved Sakura away, jumping from the tree, pulling out several kunai as the snake opened its massive jaws, revealing fangs longer that he was tall. Transferring chakra through his arms and into the kunai, he tossed them at the snake, feeling brief satisfaction as the blades entered and exited the reptile from mouth to skull.

The snake fell back against a tree, dead. Sasuke wiped the cold sweat from his forehead, turned to look around for the Grass-nin, but from the corner of his eye he caught movement from the snake, and turned back to see the scales below its head split open, an arm appearing, and then a head. The Grass-nin pulled himself from the body, long tongue hanging from his mouth as he looked at them.

"Did you relax? Prey shouldn't relax in the presence of a predator."

Sasuke gripped his katana, pursing his lips. There was no running from this guy- he was bent on killing them- Sasuke could tell. This wasn't about the scrolls, and for some reason, he felt that it was less likely to even have something to do with the Exam. This guy simply wanted to kill them. And if Sasuke was to die here, he wasn't going to be running. He was no coward.

The Grass-nin moved at them, winding his way up the tree they were on like a snake- in fact, his lower half _was_ snake-like. Sasuke jumped down toward him, ignoring Sakura's cry of shock. Before he could even reach the Grass-nin, Naruto appeared, clutching onto the back of the man, startling them all, and raised his katana in an attempt to bury it in the Grass-nin's back. The snake man twisted his head around, thick tongue coming out and grabbing Naruto's wrist, stopping him from burying the katana in his back.

Sasuke continued forward, swiping his katana at the Grass-nin's head. The Grass-nin kicked himself from the tree, avoiding Sasuke's blade and crashing into a tree, crushing Naruto against the tree. Sasuke opened his mouth to cry out Naruto's name, but stopped when Naruto appeared by his side, looking glum, and in a grey sweater as opposed to the black one he had last seen him in. The other had been a clone.

"I see you survived my giant snake, little boy," the Grass-nin cooed, cold eyes dancing.

"Aren't you going to ask him the password?" Sakura asked, staring suspiciously at the hooded blond. Sasuke ignored her; he didn't have to ask. A simple glance at his blond companion, and he could see that he had that focused look about him, the one he had seen back in Wave, and when he was staring down the Sand-nin.

"You distract," Sasuke murmured. "Try and get me a good shot. I doubt this guy wants our scroll, so don't even worry about it. He's too powerful and we need to get away from him."

Naruto never took his eyes away from the Grass-nin, didn't bother nodding as the Grass- nin pulled up his purple sleeve, revealing a tattoo marking. He bit his thumb and ran it along the tattoo, and instantly there was a poof, a rush of wind that made them momentarily shut their eyes. When they opened them again, the Grass-nin stood on the head of an even bigger snake than the one he had just killed.

"Oh," he heard Sakura breath in shock. Naruto's face was morphing into that expressionless gaze he often got as he made the seals for a kage bunshin. This time however, he felt the hooded blond gather up a rather large amount of chakra, there was a delay before three clones appeared. These ones would be tough, they would be able to take a few hits. But he saw some of the color drain from Naruto's already pallid face. Was he already reaching his limit? The Grass-nin had mentioned that Naruto had defeated another snake- had the fight been too tough?

"Go for the eyes," Naruto muttered as he and the three clones leaped at the snake. There had been no fear in his eyes, none of the usual dramatics that he dealt with at home and on a daily basis.

Sasuke grinned. This was how it was supposed to be.

"What do you want me to do?" Sakura asked, grabbing onto him as he was about to leap forward. Sasuke glared back at her, shrugging her hand off of his shoulder.

"Do what you want, just don't get in our way." He leaped at Grass-nin, swinging the blade quickly at his chest but was blown back by a gust of wind that the ninja blew from his mouth, sending him a distance away and clutching onto a tree. Below he caught a glimpse of Sakura, placing exploding tags on parts of the snake while the Naruto clones kept both Grass-nin and snake preoccupied, unaware of her.

Sasuke leaped back into the fray, his blade shining briefly in the occasional pockets of sun- the Grass-nin held them all back with only two kunai. Indeed, he was like that Anbu. The Grass-nin kicked a clone away- how he knew was by the fact that it dissipated, taking one too many hits from the deadly ninja, leaving them with only two clones and Naruto.

Several explosions erupted down below, flesh flew in all directions, causing the snake to reel, and Sasuke lost his balance. He and two of the bunshins were hit by a massive coil, and he saw stars as he fell to the ground, losing his grip on his katana. Sakura crashed into him, pulling him away from his impending collision with the earth and landing them both on a low branch.

He got quickly to his feet, staggering, numb in the torso, but his eyes were on the Grass-nin, who had captured Naruto by the throat. The snake was weaving weakly, and he glanced down quickly as he leaped forward to Naruto's rescue, seeing the gouged flesh of the reptile that Sakura had managed with her well placed tags littered about the forest floor.

"Goukyakuu no jutsu," he put his hands together, blowing the fire ball directly into the snake's unsuspecting eye. The reptile seemed to scream silently, shaking its head and tossed both the Grass-nin and Naruto off of its head- the Grass-nin had been in the process of pulling up Naruto's sweater and shirt, revealing his stomach. Whatever he had been about to do had been foiled, though he didn't release his grip on Naruto's neck as he landed on a tree. He held his Teammate up in the air, black eyes focused on Sasuke's face.

"Is this you friend, Sasuke-kun?" the Grass-nin asked. Naruto kicked him in the face once, then wrapped his legs around the Grass-nin's arm, his fingers clawing desperately at the arm holding him aloft.

"Let him go!" Sasuke shouted, rushing at the man. The Grass-nin stabbed a kunai into the Naruto's upper thigh, then dragged it down to his knee, Naruto making a pitiful whine and releasing the Grass-nin's arm. Blood poured from the gaping wound, making Sasuke pale and stop. The Grass-nin then buried the kunai into Naruto's stomach.

"Stop!" He howled, feeling his Sharingan activate. Why was it that Naruto seemed to always come out the worst in every battle? Was he born a victim? Pure rage blew through the Uchiha as he charged the man. The Grass-nin tossed Naruto away and moved to his right, like Sasuke knew he would. Sasuke could see him move before he actually did.

He spun a shuriken at the Grass-nin, watched as he dodged it, then spinning around a tree, came to the other side and tossed a kunai at the ninja, grinning as the man moved to the left, falling into his trap. Both shuriken and kunai were tied to two thin wires, and he yanked the shuriken back like a yo-yo. The Grass-nin spun around and grabbed the weapon that had come up behind him with his mouth, eyes widening when Sasuke began the seals, the wire in his own mouth.

"Gouryuuka no Jutsu!" he blew fire along the wire and directly into the Grass-nin's surprised face. The ninja staggered back a few feet, then brushed the fire away from his face, revealing strangely peeled skin. Sasuke felt his stomach drop- he was low on chakra, and Naruto was badly injured. His eyes darted quickly around, looking for his blond companion, but he was nowhere in sight.

"You handle the Sharingan well for one so young. You truly hold the blood of the great Uchiha Clan." The Grass-nin lifted his hand hand ran it along his hitai-ate, revealing not the three strands of grass, but a musical note. He was from Sound? Why was a Sound- nin pretending to be a Grass- nin?

"Who are you?" Sasuke demanded. "What do you want?" He tried to move, but was startled to find that his body wouldn't move.

"I want _you_, Sasuke-kun," The man stared at them as he revealed their Heaven Scroll from behind his back, and it was in the process of burning. "My name is Orochimaru, and if you would like to meet again, survive this Exam."

"Why the hell would we want to see you again?!" Sakura asked incredulously.

The Sound-nin smiled, putting his hands together- Sasuke tensed, knowing that he was going to do a jutsu, and that they were both unable to move. To his horror, the man's neck suddenly stretched, elongating and moving toward them, his mouth open wide, two fangs gleaming at him while the body remained where it was. The Sound-nin sank his teeth into his neck, then jerked back to where his body was, all in the time it took Sakura to squeal in horror. Pain roared through Sasuke's body as he covered the area bitten with a shaking hand as he stared at the Sound-nin, who was in the process of sinking down into the tree.

"If you want power, you'll come see me," Orochimaru said with a smile as Sasuke felt his legs buckle and Sakura grab him. It felt like there was acid running through his veins- not like he knew what that felt like, but this must be close. He gasped in pain as his vision shot to ribbons, and it felt like all the muscles in his body were in the process of seizing.

He tried to grab Sakura as she lay him down on the branch. "Where's Naruto?" he gasped, his vision disappearing. "Where is he?" He thought he may have grabbed onto her hair- it sure felt like hair, and he had a good grip on it as more pain roared through him. He heard her cry out as he yanked her toward him.

"Sasuke-kun! You're hurting me!" he heard her cry, and he had the urge to rip her hair out of her head. Why was _she_ hurting? Was she even injured? Was there acid running through her veins? The useless bitch probably had a few scratches on her while Naruto was probably lying not too far, bleeding to death, because apparently he saved a pair of big hairy balls for when they had to fight someone clearly tougher than they were.

"_Find him,_" Sasuke growled, but did not hear her reply as he drifted away into unconsciousness.

---------------

Sakura eased her hair out of Sasuke's grasp, wiping sweat from her face as she stared at him. He was very pale, and his breath was ragged. She had to get him out of here, away from this battle scene. It had been noisy, others may be on their way, attracted to the sounds of a big battle. She gathered Sasuke in her arms, pausing to glance around the area.

Naruto was nowhere in sight. She had seen the Orochimaru person throw him, but he couldn't have thrown him far. Had he run off to nurse his wounds? _Find him! _She flinched, Sasuke's crazed command ringing in her head. She had to get Sasuke out of here. Naruto, despite his appearances, was tough- tougher than she had thought. Braver than she had thought. He hadn't seemed as scared of Orochimaru as she and Sasuke had. She tightened her grip on her Teammate and carefully descended down the side of a tree, making it to the earth and carefully making steps, not wanting to slip on snake guts.

Sasuke was burning up, his body shaking. She glanced back around the area, hoping to catch a simple glimpse of the blond, but the only thing her eye fell on was Sasuke's pack. She quickly set him down and put the pack on her back before coming back to him. Picking him up, she went in search for a good hiding place. They were as good as finished. Not only did they not have an Earth scroll, but they now, thanks to Orochimaru, didn't have a Heaven Scroll either. Naruto was probably too injured somewhere to continue on with the Exam, and Sasuke was now most likely dying from poison.

Great. They would be lucky if they got out of this alive. She paused to glance back the way she came one last time. No Naruto.

Ah...He could take care of himself.

* * *

He had imagined that getting past that fence and into the Forest of Death would be an ordeal, that he would have to distract the chunin somehow to sneak his way in. So it was with sheer disdain that Nabeshin was able to hop over the fence unhindered by anyone, since the area was completely empty of the watchful eyes of chunin. Perhaps if it were years ago, when he was alive, he would have lamented over the security of his village, but it wasn't _his_ village anymore. He gazed back at the fence, face twisted in annoyance. He shouldn't be mad, but he was.

Nabeshin turned and leaped into the trees, grinning as he landed carefully on a branch, enjoying the sensation of weight and substance. Twice earlier he had walked into a wall, expecting to go through it, and being relieved that there was enough chakra in this form that he wasn't bothered by the collision. But now he was flesh and blood again- or something near it. The feel of a real katana in his hand was almost orgasmic. Alive, he had spent much of his time learning the art of the sword, his desire for kenjutsu had made him a bit of an oddity in the Uchiha community. While the others spent all their time collecting jutsu or perfecting their Sharingans, he had devoted most of his time learning the art of the sword, putting himself through his paces while the others harped on about chakra levels and control. Of course, he had paid much attention to the workings of the Sharingan, it was a huge advantage in a battle when you were able to see your opponents movements before he or a she made them, but he had been less interested in the genjutsu of it. Nabeshin was a man of the flesh- he preferred the feeling of his blade moving through someone's body than making them believe that it had happened through illusion. While the others stressed about achieving the mangekyou, he had perfected his art. They had thought him stupid- they had told him he could achieve mangekyou if he had really wanted to.

But he hadn't, because he had been a man of the flesh, he had been loyal to his family, so while some had chopped down lovers, and mothers, and fathers, sisters and brothers, in an attempt to achieve the power, he had declined. He had been happy with any jutsu he had collected on missions, happy with his growing skills with the katana, and he had loved Momori and the unexpected, unborn child that would have joined them in the world. The only thing he had been unhappy about, was the treatment the Uchiha had suffered over the years.

When he had decided to enter the forest after Team Seven, he had gone back to the Uchiha compound to collect his katana, which was back at the infirmary. Going into the place where his world had ended had been stressful, picking up his katana where it lay beside the stain of his body had made him feel sick; he had not dared to look where Momori had fallen. But holding his katana again had almost sent him to tears- such sheer elation at the familiar feel and weight of what had belonged to him since he had been six. His body had actually shook, eyes clouding with tears. It was like he was alive again, though he knew he shouldn't delude himself- he was really wearing a chakra suit, chakra that wasn't even his, but he could almost swear that there was blood running through his veins. Naruto made one heck of a bunshin.

He moved through the trees quickly and stealthily, feeling little bits of chakra burn away, an unsettling feeling; he had to be careful of not running out, or he would lose the body. After three hours he paused on a branch, shutting his eyes and listening to his surroundings. There was a brush of leaves, the wind moving through the thick trees. Otherwise, the forest was unnaturally silent.

The snap of a twig.

Nabeshin smiled, flinging a kunai into the thick foliage, hearing someone curse in response. He watched as a genin leaped from the bushes and into the trees, the kunai stuck in his shoulder. The brown skinned, green eyed kid pulled the kunai from his shoulder, and Nabeshin saw that no blood rose from the wound. To his left, below him, the dirt began to turn to mud around the tree, loosening the thick roots and making the tree tip over. Nabeshin left the tree in disgust and dropped into another one, eyes falling on the hitai-ate of the boy. Iwa-nin, and judging by the fact that his kunai hadn't drawn blood, was using a doton jutsu to harden his body. He hated Iwa-nin with a passion, mostly because of the war he had participated in when he was in his late teens, and the animosity he felt for them had not faded, never since he had lost a brother to one of those dirt pushers.

He felt his face stiffen with a cold smile "Which scroll do you have?" he asked as a second and third genin appeared. One looked similar to the first, dark-skinned and green eyed, while the other was lighter in skin color with darker eyes. He was going to assume that the first two were closely related, most likely brothers. All three looked about fourteen, wearing greens and browns, a usual color for Iwa-nin.

"Like we'd tell you!" the light skinned one sneered, looking quite confident.

No matter. He did not care which one they had- he was aiming for both Earth and Heaven scrolls. He didn't know which one Team Seven had been given, not being present, but in case theirs had been taken, he would be ready to hand both to Sasuke.

Nabeshin examined them carefully, looking for the strategist in the group, picking him out by the way his green eyes would occasionally dart about, taking in the area, no doubt running scenarios and tactics through his head. The other two were melee fighters then, prone to acts of recklessness without much thought or planning. Every Team had one or two of them, and they would be easy to get rid of once their tactician was removed.

"Give me your scrolls and I'll let you Iwa scum live," he threatened.

The dark eyed one gave him the finger, while the tactician frowned. "Where's your Leaf buddies? Confident enough to take all of us?"

"Yeah," the dark eyed one guffawed. "You barely look like a ninja! Maybe you should have stayed home and seen a dentist, maybe clean out your foul mouth!"

Nabeshin frowned, puzzled at what a dentist had to do with anything, then realized the Iwa-scum was probably referring to the strange puffs of reddish smoke that was constantly coming from his mouth since he had taken a clone body. He didn't know why it was coming from his mouth- this hadn't happened outside of the clone, but it seemed harmless. He imagined he looked very harmless since he was still in his henge, looking like a simple dark brown haired kid with heavy lidded eyes, giving him a slightly sleepy look, and completely forgettable features. Yes, the only thing that probably looked even mildly intimidating was his katana.

"Well, we'll see, won't we?" Before they could reply he made the seals for the Goukyakuu jutsu, bringing his fingers to his lips and blowing it at the team- they all leaped out of the way, heading for the forest floor. Not unexpected- they were Iwa-nin after all, playing in the dirt was what they did. Nabeshin stopped the tactician from getting to the ground, swinging the katana at his head, enjoying the whistle of his blade cutting through the air. The kid managed to dodge it, just barely, Nabeshin sliced off a sizable portion of his hair as he swung his fist at him. Nabeshin dodged the fist, directing it past him and planting a knee in the kids stomach, immediately feeling the hardness of the kid's flesh and completed the move with a slice, feeling the resistance in his blade. Yep, the boy had a very good doton defense on him- the dirt covering his body would deflect most physical attacks and also allow the boy to hit harder.

"Doton: Doryuusou no jutsu!" Someone shouted below, and he moved out of the way as spears of stone rose from the ground and shot up at them. The tactician slammed his fist into one of the projectiles, shattering it upon impact.

"Watch it!" the tactician barked at the dark-eyed boy, who grinned sheepishly in return. Nabeshin landed on a tree, feeling a bit of a drain in his body; he was still vulnerable to hits, but though he had yet to be hit, the impact of his knee against the hardened genin had made him lose some chakra. He wondered how many jutsu he would be able to do before the clone would lose form. He needed to get those scrolls.

"Kage bunshin no jutsu," he muttered, creating two clones, weak ones, but he felt a large amount of chakra go. "Dammit," he muttered. He needed an even stronger clone than the one he had been given. The clones dropped down to the ground, attacking the Iwa-nins on the ground while he turned his attention to the tactician. The kid no doubt thought he had a perfect defense with the dirt covering him, but the Uchiha had spent time enough fighting Iwa-nin back when the Fourth was alive and not yet Hokage, and he had come across plenty who had covered their bodies in dirt. A simple raiton was all he needed, and unfortunately for the tactician, he knew a simple D-rank one that shouldn't drain him completely.

He attacked the boy again, aware of the skirmish down below and that he had already lost a clone to a Doryuu Heki, being spewed with dirt from the mouth of the tactician's sibling. He was a bit surprised that the kid used that technique, it was B-rank, but then, these were supposed to be the best genin that Iwagakure had to offer. It was a good thing he was going to kill them.

The tactician managed to make it to the ground, taking advantage of his momentary distraction, and he followed after him, katana above his head in both hands as he dropped down.

"Doton: Doro Gaeshi no jutsu!" the tactician shouted, striking the ground with his hands and erecting a ten foot wall of solid mud in front of him. Nabeshin cut down, using gravity and a burst of chakra to cut down the wall. The moment his feet touched the ground, he let go of his katana, freeing his hands as the tactician tried to leap back.

"Raiton: Sandaa Saaburu!" Lightning formed in his hand, and he quickly planted it against the tactician's chest. The boy cried out, electricity running through his body, making him stagger back, stumbling into a tree. Nabeshin leapt forward, grabbing one shoulder and yanking the boy up into the trees, using more chakra to propel both him and the boy high up, feeling the added weight of the Iwa-nin.

The remaining clone jumped into the trees, joining him with his katana in its hand while he slipped behind the incapacitated tactician and placed a kunai against his neck. The skin split, and he was pleased to see a line of blood appear. Both genin below froze.

"Give me your scroll," he commanded, "Or I'll kill this one."

"No w-" the dark eyed one began, but the other green-eyed one cut him off.

"Shut up Tetsuo and give him the damned scroll!" His face was turning red.

"No!" Tetsuo snapped, apparently the one in possession of the scroll. "We'll fail this Exam if we do."

Nabeshin clucked, shaking his head. "Priorities boy. If your tactician is dead, you'll not only fail in this Exam, but you'll go home to your filthy country one member short." He glanced at the trembling brother, whose face was going pale with fear and outrage. "Plus you'll have to deal with his surviving brother. Just give me the scroll and you can live another day for another Exam."

Tetsuo growled, glancing at the other boy, who was staring at him like he couldn't believe they were even having this conversation. He pulled out the scroll from a leg holster and tossed it up to him. The clone snatched it out of the air and slipped away silently into the foliage.

"Release Shohei," the green-eyed one said from the ground. "You have the scroll, we don't want to fight you anymore. You win, we lose."

Nabeshin nodded. "Yes, that is correct. I'll _release_ him like I said." He dragged the blade across Shohei's jugular, feeling warm blood spurt over his hand as he released the boy and allowed him to fall to the earth. The brother rushed to him, face in a silent scream, catching his brother before he hit the ground. Tetsuo looked stunned, frozen; he had probably thought in his young foolish mind that they would get out of this somehow and come out the victors. So stunned was he that he didn't notice the bunshin slip out of the foliage behind him, katana raised and whistling as it struck his head from his body. Tetsuo's head rolled to the ground soundlessly as Nabeshin dropped down behind the grieving brother. The bunshin tossed the katana to him, the blade flashing in the brief pockets of light that made it through the canopy as he caught it with his bloody hand and walked up to the brother.

The kid lifted his head, face streaked with tears as he looked up at him, eyes hollowed out in grief. "You said..."

"Yes well," Nabeshin said, raising his katana, "Sometimes the war never ends for some of us."

For a second the boy looked confused, but then his green eyes drifted to his hitai-ate, and understanding filled his eyes, along with hate. "You bast-"

Nabeshin sliced his head in half at an angle, from his ear to the rim of his jaw, and watched in admiration as the top half slid wetly down, revealing pieces of his brain as his body fell over Shohei's.

His bunshin walked over and handed him the scroll, it was the Heaven scroll, then it dissipated, having done its job.

Nabeshin smiled at his work, pleased, but as he took a step away, felt his henge drop. He stopped, grimacing as he felt how low he was. Maybe two hits and he would lose this body. He couldn't allow that, which also meant that he would be unable to do any jutsu. He needed a stronger bunshin.

---------

Nabeshin thanked the gods of luck later, when coming upon a group of Mist-nin who were in process of trying to kill each other. They should have joined forces and taken out other groups, but as Nabeshin crouched in the bushes, it became clear that they were rivals clans of that village, and the animosity between them lay unhindered in a foreign land. It was while he was wondering what types of scrolls they may have, that he noticed a dead genin with a pack still attached to her back laying not too far from him. He had snuck over to her, dug into her pack and to his utter delight, discovered an Earth Scroll nestled at the bottom. So he had taken that and slipped away, marveling at his luck, but knowing that if he came across an enemy, he would not only lose his body, but the two scrolls as well.

As he slipped through the forest, he felt his henge disappear, knowing that he now looked like the creator of his body. He promised himself he wouldn't look in a puddle. Hours passed, night fell, the chakra moved throughout his body calmly, and he remained safe. Morning came, and he still had his body, though it was weak; he didn't dare trip on anything. If he fell, he was finished.

It was mid-afternoon when he heard a strange noise, something between a moan and growl. It raised the small hairs at the nape of his neck and made him freeze where he stood. It was coming ahead of him to his left, the noise, with a slight rustling, like something dragging itself in the foliage.

Whatever it was he didn't want to come across it, but on the other hand, he wanted to know- had to know, actually. Carefully he stepped closer to the rustling, stepping around brittle twigs and some dead leaves, peering beyond the bushes to see what it was.

Two beacons of red light turned to him. Nabeshin shut his eyes quickly, turning his head away, then peered back at Naruto at the corner of his eyes. He was lying on the ground, arms wrapped around his stomach, right leg split open from thigh to knee. There was dried crusted blood around his nose and mouth, and Nabeshin got the feeling that he had been laying there for quite some time.

His face was the usual, hollow, pale, but with the two large holes where his eyes were supposed to be, filled with that red light. He couldn't look into those eyes- it felt like he would be devoured, eaten. He could feel them on him, focused, running over his body, no doubt seeing past the bunshin and into him.

"**Come here," **he commanded, and Nabeshin flinched. He bit his lip, darting frightened eyes at the boy, seeing that those focused lights were on him.** "Come here," **that multi-toned voice commanded, and he heard impatience thread through it.

Nabeshin swallowed and stepped through the bushes, coming as close as he dared, two feet from the injured body. The beacons stared up at him for a moment, then the right arm unwrapped itself from his midsection and reached out for him.

Nabeshin did not want to touch Naruto; he had never done it before when he had trained him, because he knew that though he was dead, Naruto was able to touch him, harm him. Though Naruto had yet to actually do so himself, he knew that if Naruto wanted, he would bring Nabeshin to true death, and he didn't want that. There were things he had to do while he still existed.

But he lifted an identical hand and placed it in Naruto's bloody, outstretched one. He felt the chakra being pulled from him back into the body of the boy, sucking away, until it dissipated around him, and he was without body anymore, Naruto's beacon eyes flashing repeatedly. But Naruto had his now much larger hand still in his small grip.

"Let go!" he gasped, feeling pure terror, something he hadn't felt in a long time. "Let go of me!" he cried, trying to yank his hand from the boy's grip. If he could remove that hand, he would gladly chop it off. The beacons still stared at him. "_Please_," he pleaded.

He was released. Nabeshin staggered back, taking in a deep, useless breath as Naruto turned on his stomach, giving a small groan. One hand moved over his belly, and he saw that the boy had recently been stabbed, through the remaining chakra he had taken back from the bunshin had closed it up, through it was caked with blood.

Naruto turned over and lifted himself slowly to his feet, favoring the torn leg, which looked like he had only managed to stop the bleeding.

"What happened?" he asked. Naruto began to limp forward, ignoring his question. "Wait!" The boy turned his beacon eyes on him. Nabeshin pointed to the two scrolls lying on the ground. "I got these for you guys in case you failed to get some." Naruto limped slowly over to the scrolls, one hand still holding his stomach as he bent over slowly, making an unhealthy gurgle in his throat, blood seeping past his lips as he picked up the scrolls and pressed them against his belly. "You should probably take my katana too. Use it as a crutch for that leg."

Naruto turned and picked that up as well, using it as a walking stick as he slowly moved through the forest, pulling his hood up over his uneven hair, a pitiful sight, limping in a grey stained sweater, face turned down in silent misery, except for the gurgles and rasps that were coming from him. Nabeshin followed along silently, unwilling to ask for a bunshin, knowing he wouldn't get one anyway- if Naruto couldn't completely heal his stomach, and hadn't even bothered on the leg, then he obviously had no chakra to spare.

----------------

He was back home, standing in the hallway in front of his dad's workroom. He didn't know how he had gotten there- he didn't usually come unless Naruto was at his side, but looking to his left and right, he didn't see the hooded blond anywhere. But when his eyes fell on the room again, he choked back a cry of horror, seeing his parents lying there, a kunai buried in his mother's chest. His father was face down on the wooden floor, the smell of their blood thick in the air.

If only he had the strength to stop this from happening... Sasuke backed away from the room, mind warring with rage, terror, and despair. Why was he seeing this again? He had thought he was over the nightmares, over the horrors of the memory. But it was back, fresh, a newly reopened wound, with a new brand of knowledge, that this wasn't only the betrayal of his brother, but the whole damned village. He was living in a cesspool of betrayers.

When he woke, he was filled with a feeling of utter completeness, such surety that he leaped to his feet, eyes darting around and taking in everything at once. He was not where he had remembered, standing in the hollow of a tree. About him in the clearing were several familiar faces. Sakura was half lying on the ground, her arms holding her upright, her face was a swollen mess, hair chopped up and uneven, arms scraped and bloody. Near her lay that Leaf genin dressed in all green with the bowl cut- his eyes were open but he looked incapable of fighting. Nara Shikamaru was holding an unconscious Ino, while Chouji stood near them. In a tree overlooking the scene was a Hyuuga, below him was the girl that he had seen with the kid in the green leotard.

Besides the potential allies, there were the three Sound-nin from earlier, the ones that had attacked Kabuto before the first Exam had started. He hadn't liked them on simple principal, and with all the chakra running wildly through him, they looked like perfectly acceptable targets.

"Sasuke," Sakura gasped. "Your body!"

Sasuke looked down at his arms, vaguely startled to see the fiery marks riddled along them. But damn, he felt great, like he could take on any ninja that came his way. "Don't worry about it Sakura, I feel great. _He_ gave this power to me," this Orochimaru person. He needed more of this, so much more. But first, he was going to kill these Sound-nin.

"Ino we're leaving!" Shikamaru called, starting to run towards the bushes, holding said girl in his arms. "Chouji, let's go!"

As Akimichi rushed after Shikamaru, the Sound-nin girl made the seal for releasing a jutsu and dropped to the dirt with a groan.

Sasuke ignored them, his eyes trained on the Sound-nin. The one with the bandages took a step back as he moved forward, while the kid with the black spiky hair attacked, using a jutsu that blew dirt at him, or so it seemed, because he moved out of the way and appeared at the Sound-nin's side, hitting him forcefully, knocking the boy several feet away. As he steadied himself near his Team mate, Sasuke gathered some of the seemingly limitless chakra rushing through him.

"Katon: Hosenka no Jutsu!" He blew several fireballs at the Sound-nin, tossing kunai into them. The kid, Zaku was his name, lifted his hands, blasting them with his attack, then cried out when the kunai were revealed, lifting his arms to protect himself from the onslaught.

Sasuke grinned wildly, appearing behind him and grabbing his outstretched arms, pulling them back behind him. He stepped on the kids back and pressed down, pushing his body forward and his arms up and back. The sound of the bones snapping was like music to his ears, the sound of Zaku's pained scream was like the climax to a symphony of musical pain. He laughed, releasing the arms and turning to the one with his face wrapped.

"You're next," he promised, eyes passing over everyone there. "Why don't you come over and let me play with you?" He saw the Sound-nin step back, but his attention was wandering, because his eyes had taken in everyone again, and he just noticed that someone wasn't there.

"Stop!" Sakura cried, wrapping her arms around him from behind, but he shoved her away his malicious joy quickly turning to fury.

"Where is Naruto," he asked her calmly, and she stared at him, tearful eyes wide. "_Where the fuck is Naruto?_!" He screamed, grabbing her by the throat. "I _told_ you to find him. _Where is he_?"

"I- I couldn't find him, " she gasped, tears running down her face. Disgust ran through him, and he tossed her away, turning away as Ino jumped from the bushes, face red with fury, Shikamaru following behind her, face resigned and wary.

"What's your problem?!" she shrieked. "Sakura's your Teammate!"

Sasuke made a move toward her, but he couldn't- he was frozen, his legs unwilling to move. He looked down, and noticed that something dark was connected to his shadow, and he turned his fury on the shadow user standing just behind the blond bitch.

"You _really_ need to calm down," Shikamaru suggested, dark eyes steady on his. "You're having a hard time differentiating friend from foe."

Sasuke opened his mouth to reply, but the Hyuuga boy dropped down from the tree, pale eyes staring back into the foliage curiously. There was a rustling, and out of the gloom limped a very familiar hooded blond, head down as he moved slowly through the bushes.

The fury left him upon the sight of his blond companion, covered in his own blood, wounded and using his katana as a third leg. He felt Shikamaru release him, and he moved toward Naruto, taking in the huge gash that was nearly to the bone, his other hand holding a bulge under his bloodied sweater. Was it his innards? Was he barely holding them in? Naruto limped slowly up to him and stood there, staring at the dirt, strands of hair covering his face.

The amazing power he had felt faded, his body ached with the strain of his earlier fight. Sakura got to her feet, wiping her swollen face quickly.

"Naruto!" She looked relieved. Of course she would- if Naruto had died, Sasuke was sure he would kill her too. He _recalled_ telling her to look for him, but he got the feeling she hadn't even tried- and if she _had, _he didn't care. Naruto hadn't been there. "You're alive! Thank goodness."

"Let's go," he gestured for them to follow him as he began to move toward the direction of the Tower.

"Hey!" It was Ino again. "Can't you see he's badly injured?! How can you expect him to continue on?"

Sasuke turned deadened eyes to her, her eyes widened and she took a step back. "Stay out of my business." He turned those eyes on Sakura. "Let's. Go." He continued on, Naruto limping after them, Sakura quickly thanking the others for coming to her rescue. Not a big surprise- Sakura couldn't do shit on her own. His eyes turned to look slightly behind him, where Naruto limped on, bloody face pallid, eyes mostly unfocused. He was in bad shape. Sasuke angled them towards the direction of the river. It would be good to get water down Naruto's throat, and then he could inspect the damage. His eyes darted to Naruto's stomach where he held the large lumps, dreading what he would see, but admiring the silent endurance of the hooded blond. Just when he thought he was weak and pitiful, Naruto proved him wrong, in major ways.

It was hours before they reached the water, hearing it long before they reached it, and by then he had a grip on Naruto's arm, pulling him along. He had dropped the katana and hour ago, other hand still clutching his stomach, and Sakura had picked it up. Though his leg wasn't bleeding, the risk of permanent damage and infection was high, and he was eager to set the blond down and wrap up the mess of it. But he was worried about his stomach. Twice Naruto had broken into a fit of wet coughing, and he was worried that there was internal bleeding.

At the river's edge, Sakura dropped his pack down and turned grim eyes on them as he allowed Naruto to lower himself into the sand.

"Alright, let me see it," Sasuke couched as Naruto lay back slowly on the ground, blue eyes unfocused. Sasuke swallowed, gripping his sweater with a shaky hand, steadying himself for the sight he was about to see, so it was to his utter shock that when he pulled it up, two scrolls fell out, rolling onto the sand. Sasuke stared at the scrolls in silent disbelief before he snatched them up, unable to say a word as he stared at the the characters Heaven and Earth on each.

"How'd he get those?!" Sakura asked, eyes wide. He looked at his blond companion, whose eyes were closed and face etched in pained misery. His eyes darted to his bloody exposed stomach,and gave an audible sigh of relief when he saw the closed wound.

"Go find some food," he told the kunoichi, turning angry eyes on her. "You can do that, right?"

Sakura's face turned red, and she nodded silently, turning away and disappearing into the surrounding trees.

Sasuke dug into the pack and pulled out bandages, antiseptic, and a small box of disinfectant wipes, which he didn't recall putting there. He carefully pulled the bloody sweater from the blond, resisting the urge to simply tear it away, knowing that later, when Naruto was better, he would freak out if he was so exposed.

He carefully cleaned up his Teammate, carefully bandaged the leg, though Naruto made that difficult whenever he jerked his leg away from him. Sasuke had been forced to create a kage bunshin to hold the blond's leg down while he wrapped it, ignoring the pained whimpers passing Naruto's pale lips.

"Where did you get these scrolls?" Sasuke asked once he had not only cleaned Naruto up, but washed and dried his sweater and put it back on.

Naruto opened an eye, a sliver of blue peering out at him behind pale eyelashes. "Nabeshin."

Sasuke rocked back on his heels, looking into the river. His cousin, however distant he was, was becoming more useful and vital than he could have ever imagined.

"We'll have to get him a stronger bunshin when your reserves are back," he said to the blond, and Naruto made no reply to this. Sasuke dug into the pack and pulled out a very small pouch, pulling out three sedatives. "Take these," he pressed them against Naruto's lips. The blond opened his eyes fully, staring at him. "It's the sedatives, like last time." Naruto opened his mouth, to his surprise, and he placed them in, pouring some water from the canteen down his throat so that he could wash it down. He would have tried to make him eat, but that was wishful thinking- Naruto didn't like to eat when he _wasn't_ hurt, so it was unlikely that he would want to do it now.

By the time Sakura returned with food, Naruto had drifted away into a drug induced sleep, the kind without dreams.

"How much time do we have left?" he asked the girl. She looked up at him from the small fire she was in the process of making, so that she could cook the fish she had caught.

"We've got three days left," she replied in a subdued manner.

Sasuke glanced at Naruto- he would be out for the rest of today, and most likely tomorrow, which was fine. He would be well enough that they would be able to haul ass all the way to the Tower with time to spare. He settled in for a night of a wait.

---------

As he had thought, Naruto stayed asleep the rest of that day and most of the day after that, stirring as the sun set and sitting up, blinking weakly at them. When Sakura left camp to relieve herself, he fed Naruto one of his candy bars and checked his leg. It didn't look as well as he had hoped it would, thinking that the Kyuubi's chakra would have worked on it a bit, but it only looked clotted and swollen, the flesh still split wide open.

But when they broke camp, Naruto stood up on his own, only grimacing and favoring the leg, and there was a bit of color and vitality back in his skin, even if he looked as miserable as he usually did. Sasuke bent down, picking up Naruto's katana to hand it to him, but paused, noticing that this one was longer than both his and Naruto's.

"Where'd you get this one from?" he asked.

Naruto glanced over at the blade in disinterest. "Nabeshin," he muttered, looking over at a spot near Sasuke's shoulder, and he turned his head to look at the spot, seeing nothing, but understanding that his cousin was standing at his side.

"Thanks," he murmured, and felt awe when there came a brief coldness on his shoulder. "We'll get you a new body," Sasuke promised, relishing the sensation on his shoulder, before it faded, and he assumed his cousin was no longer touching him.

"Who are you talking to?" Sakura's voice ruined the moment. "Whose Nabeshin?"

Sasuke ignored her, pulling on his pack, now filled with two scrolls. "Let's go," he said, leaping into the trees, glancing back to see if Naruto was capable of following him, pleased to see the blond leap up into the trees, though he did it mostly with his left leg, and was much more clumsy than he usually was.

Hopefully, by the fifth day, he would be healed enough to participate in the third Exam, whatever that was to be.

-------------

By the time they reached the Tower, Naruto was only limping slightly, though he was back to lamenting silently over the usual things that Sasuke was used to him being upset about, like the state of his skin. Though there was a thin layer of dirt on all of them, Naruto still managed to make it seem like he was covered in complete filth by his constant wiping of his arms and hair. Sakura had taken to silently watching him- she had been doing this for the last day and a half, watching them, being very quiet. She had stopped asking questions, which was fine with him, but her watchfulness was a suspicious thing, and then, of course, because he was suspicious, he decided to toss the thought away, not wanting to sound or think like Naruto, who was suspicious of everything and everyone.

They came to a door with a tag on it, and Sasuke pushed it open, walking into an empty room. He glanced around, fingering Nabeshin's katana. Unfortunately both he and Naruto had lost theirs and Nabeshin's was too unfamiliar in his hand- the curve of the blade was stronger and the handle was a bit wider than theirs.

"I think we're supposed to open the scrolls now," Sakura's voice came from behind him, and he glanced back at her- she pointed at the wall, where a poster was taped to it. Not bothering to read the words, he tossed the Earth Scroll to her and opened the Heaven one. There was a pop and whoosh, smoke filling the room, and a red haired chunin appeared, blinking at them, then giving a thumbs up.

"Okay then, you three pass the third test. Good for you." he gestured toward another door. "I hope you're not too tired," His eyes fell upon the state in which Sakura and Naruto were in. "Because it doesn't end here. In you go."

Sasuke turned eagerly to the door, body feeling like he hadn't spent the last four and a half days in the forest, eager to test himself out again, to feel that power rush through him. As he pushed open the door, he glanced back at Naruto, who was following more slowly, slightly from the limp, but also from the usual reluctance. Sakura moved past him as he waited for Naruto to catch up.

Upon entering the room, he saw that it was filled with all the other passing ninja. He spotted the Team that the green kid was on- with the Hyuuga, who turned pale eyes on him when he entered. He saw Team Eight, and wondered how long they had been here. There were a few other Teams- he saw Kabuto, who lifted a hand in cheerful greeting. The Sand-siblings caught his eye, the red-head Gaara watching Naruto's every move. He glanced at Naruto, half expecting to see him staring the other down, but the blond was too preoccupied with the floor, which was fine with him.

He glared back at the Sand-nin, then leaned against the wall, awaiting whatever challenge that would come at him next.

It was while he was silently leaning, that he felt someone touch his neck, and was completely surprised to see that it was Naruto, a thin finger touching the bite he had on his neck, his blue eyes looking at him in question.

"It's nothing," he muttered, placing his hand over the bite- it hurt when he his hand came in contact with it. Naruto looked down at the ground again, smoothing his hood down.

He surprised him again by saying quite matter- of -factly, in his usual broken voice, "It's poison."

What was he to say to that?

* * *

The two chuunin swept the Forest of Death, searching for stragglers that hadn't passed the second part of the Exam, shaking their heads when they came across the dead bodies of several genin, some from each village. They showed more respect for a few of their own leaf-genin, but avoided identifying faces, because they didn't want to recognize any of the teenagers unfortunate enough to be killed, lest they know them or a family member of theirs..

They knew that other chunin were having luck, finding some kids that were still alive, simply injured, or a few that weren't injured at all, having had their scrolls taken, or foolish enough to open them when they weren't supposed to. For some reason, this part of the forest had been the unlucky side. Tsuyoshi shook his head when they came upon the bodies of a trio of Iwa- nin. These ones had died quickly, judging by the cleanness of the slices, though he grimaced at the one that had his head sliced at an angle.

His partner tapped him on the shoulder, and as he turned to him, the chunin pointed silently up, and he lifted his head to see a hooded boy sitting up high in the trees, legs dangling over the side of the branch.

Tsuyoshi ran up the side of the tree and stood on a branch across from the boy. The kid's feature's were obscured by the black hoodie he was wearing, but Tsuyoshi could see that he was blond and on the smaller side, with a leaf hitai-ate tied to his shoulder. He was picking absently at his pants leg, as if there was a broken thread over the knee or some type of stain there that he was attempting to get out.

"Where's your Team?" he asked the straggler, and the boy's head came up slowly, revealing bruised blue eyes on a hollow face, three line marks on each side of his sunken cheeks. The kid didn't look well, pale blue eyes looking tired and worn out. This one looked like he had lost his Teammates. Tsuyoshi winced. "What's your name kid?" he asked gently.

"Naruto," the boy rasped, eyes drifting back down to his knee, and he continued to pick at it.

"Where are you Teammates?" His partner Kouichi asked.

The boy, Naruto, looked up again, eyes drifting to the surrounding forest. "They moved on," he replied.

Tsuyoshi grimaced. "Alright, let's go back and find you sensei. What's your sensei's name?" He gestured for the boy to get up, but the kid only stared at him in disinterest. Kouichi glanced at him, shaking his head as he hopped over to the branch the kid was on and took hold of his arm, pulling him gently to his feet. Some people didn't manage to pass the most important test- the ability to cope with the loss of a Team member. This kid's ninja career was most likely finished- and most likely his psyche as well.

The kid looked up at Kouichi and spoke again. "My orders are unfinished."

Kouichi frowned, looking down at the kid he was holding by the arm. "What do you mean?"

The kid looked down at the forest floor, then at their surroundings. "He told me to observe the others. I have observed. What do I do now?"

Tsuyoshi's eyes narrowed, and he hopped over to the kid's branch where they stood. "Who told you that?"

"Naruto," the boy replied, tilting his head back to look up at him, hood falling back to reveal pale blond hair drifting down his shoulders, but it was at different lengths, as if he had taken a pair of scissors to it at different times and had not bothered to even it out.

"I thought you said _your_ name was Naruto," Kouichi shook his head at the kid in sympathy.

"Leave him Kou," he said to the man. "It's a bunshin...a kage bunshin to be exact." Kouichi's eyes rose in surprise, and he released the bunshin, who seemed unperturbed by them. The kage bunshin was a jounin level technique; it was interesting that a mere genin was tossing that around. "Who is you sensei?" he asked the clone again.

"Hatake Kakashi," the bunshin replied. The Copy Cat Ninja. His Team would have made it through to the Prelims then, with him being a special jounin _and_ ex-anbu captain. "Why don't you release then?" he said to the bunshin. "I'm sure you gathered enough information already. This _Naruto_ could probably use what you have gathered." He had the ability to use the Kage bunshin, but only one or two, and they only lasted, at the most, thirty minutes. If he was correct, this one had lasted about five days now. This _Naruto _must have an amazing chakra reserve to make a bunshin that not only lasts five days, but apparently had enough that it was lingering around. He shouldn't be surprised that the Copy Cat Ninja had such a student. Only the best for the best.

The bunshin frowned, lifting a hand and staring down at its palm, eyes looking fascinated by the chakra created tendons. "Perhaps there is more to observe," the broken voice said, turning the thin hand over, gazing at the knuckles, then lowering them and looking up at the two chuunin. "Yes, I do not feel like returning. I will observe more."

He turned and dropped down from the tree, landing lightly on the ground, stepping silently over the bodies of the dead Iwa-nin and disappearing silently into the foliage.

Kouichi stared down at the bushes in wonder. "Are kage bunshin supposed to be like that?" he asked in curiosity.

"Like what?"

"I don't know- like they're really a _person_..."

Tsuyoshi shook his head. "There's a reason why that technique is generally forbidden," he muttered. "Let's go search for any stragglers, though I'm beginning to think we won't be finding any." He glanced down at the dead Iwa-nin, their bodies already decomposing.

He wondered what clan this Naruto belonged to, wishing he had asked him for his last name, since the Kage bunshin had been rather free with information. He'd ask someone back at HQ, or find Hatake Kakashi himself and ask.

**TBC**

**So...a lot of things happened, but a lot of other things _didn't_ happen. No meeting Kabuto at the last second, no fight between Sakura and the sound-nin, mainly because it went exactly as in canon. Got some background information on Nabeshin.**

**On the subject of Naruto and the villagers → Because he had spent most of his early life hiding, ninety-eight percent of the villagers have forgotten about him- in fact, they don't even know his _name_. They, like Iruka, have assumed that he was sent away soon after the Kyuubi was sealed in him. Only a select few actually knew that he lived at the apartment, and they chose to bother him during the Festival. So in reality, Naruto's comments that the villagers were out to get him are only valid during the days of the festival. Naruto's claims that he could tell that the villagers were watching him are really, all in his head. They're not really watching him.**

**Next time, the prelims.**

Sorry about any spelling and grammar errors you are no doubt likely to come across. -_-


	16. Chapter 16

Disclaimer: Naruto does not belong to Kirsdarkenvar

**The Ghost and the Darkness**

**Once again, anything that goes the same as canon, I won't write about, because that would be boring and repetitious. Enjoy. I'm afraid I've had to insert page breaks because the site won't let me put up small ones. I don't know why. Sorry!**

**Chapter Sixteen**

He was used to constant aches and pains, the pain in his joints, the misery in his head- he could only remember two instances in his short existence when he had felt marginally _alright_- and _that_ had lasted as long as it took for Sasuke or _Them_ to harass him back into misery again. So the constant burning of his leg and stomach was nothing new, merely a nuisance, an inconvenience. Naruto kept the leg slightly raised from the ground, putting as little pressure upon it as he could without it being obvious, though there was little he could do about the sight of it, and was aware that eyes occasionally fell upon it. The pants leg was split open from his upper thigh down below his knee, and the gash was revealed along the length of it. Sasuke had cleaned and bandaged it, but a stain of blood had traced the length of it so that all knew exactly how long the wound was.

He glanced up from beneath his bangs to take another look at the mark on Sasuke's neck- the area around it was slightly red and every few moments Sasuke's jaws would clench- rather minutely- one who didn't know him would not even notice. But Naruto did know, and he understood that the mark sent spasms of pain through Sasuke even though his demeanor did not outwardly show it. Though he had asked where the strange mark had come from, Sasuke had not said and he was left with a rather certain feeling that the mark would prove to be a malady in both their cases. And since he was pretty sure that Sasuke hadn't stopped somewhere and gotten a tattoo, he was left with the reasonable assumption that someone had put it there, most likely against his will. His black eyes were trained stoically on all the occupants in the room that waited along with them. Sasuke's eyes followed someone, and Naruto looked to see that they followed Sakura, who was moving up to that blond girl she used to hang with. If anyone looked worse than him, it was probably Sakura. Half of her face was swollen, her hair had been lopped off by what must have been a kunai, and her clothes were filthy. Absolutely filthy.

The blond haired girl's face was turning red as her mouth moved, hands flying about in outraged expressions. Her two Teammates came up behind her, the chunky one and the one with the black hair pulled up. They looked like they wanted to avoid a confrontation, and so did Sakura, by the way she put up her hands in a gesture that seemed to tell the blond girl to relax. Naruto didn't know. Although the girl was shouting, and he did see from behind his bangs that others were looking, he couldn't hear a lick of it. He couldn't hear anything except for the sound of _Them_- _They_ blotted out every sound, he had gone momentarily deaf except for _Them_.

He didn't look- he was determined _not_ to look, to continue to stare at the blond girl as she pointed at Sasuke in anger, her lips pulling back in a rather alarming snarl. The boy with the white puppy was approaching her in clear interest. She must be so loud-

No, he mustn't look. The dog boy seemed to listen to what the girl was saying, his expression clouding over as he threw glances in Sasuke's direction. His mouth too moved as he seemed to address Sakura.

Maybe if he just looked a little, just a glance, he would look away immediately after he'd had a peek, just a little look...

Naruto's eyes darted away from the blond girl and fell on the red-headed jinchuuriki. He meant to look away as he had planned, it was just supposed to be a quick glance, nothing more, but the Sand-nin was staring right back at him, and he could no longer look away- no...he didn't _want_ to look away.

He wanted to kill him. He wanted to kill him so bad- as a matter of fact- he _had_ to do it. He had to do it like he had to breath, or he had to shower, or he had to clean. It had to be done. Things would be good if he could kill this person and _They_ agreed. In fact, just wanting to kill this person made him feel good, the constant pain in his head had momentarily ceased, his leg no longer throbbed with each beat of his heart, everything had a soft glow to it. If they would just let him cut his throat, let his warm blood spill over his hands; Naruto's mouth filled with saliva and his hands began to rub over one another as if he could feel the blood on them and he was rubbing it into his skin like the lotion he had seen some girls put on. If they would just let him pluck out those green eyes, if they would just let him shove his hands into his stomach... He was wringing his fingers now, his stomach cramping harshly. He didn't feel so good now. He needed to kill this person _now_, and who was going to stop him? _They_ wanted- no needed him to do this, and what _They_ wanted _They-_

Someone grabbed his arm in a rather forceful grip, jerking him out of his wanting, causing sound to return to him, loud and intrusive, and his hands flew to his ears to temper the barrage of sound that assaulted him.

"_You're a crazy fuck you hear me?"_ Someone was screeching, and he looked up to see that it was the blond girl still, her face absolutely livid, and her teammate was holding her back as her blue eyes seemed to try to burn a hole into Sasuke. It was Sasuke who had him by the arm, and was pulling him toward another door, which was now open with a chunin ushering the genin through. Eyes were on all of them. Naruto blanched and lowered his head, smoothing down his hood. He was standing out- people were looking at him.

"...Kill that bitch..." Sasuke was muttering as he pulled him through into another room, much larger than the one that they had been holed in for the last fifteen minutes. They stood in front of a group of chunin, jounin of the candidates, and the Hokage. His headache was back, his leg and stomach hurt- his shoulders slumped as he peeked over at the Sand-nin. He shouldn't have looked. But now he had to kill the Sand-nin. Ever since he had first come across the Sand-nin on the side of the street, the feeling had grown- now it was almost unbearable. His mind began to run wildly through scenarios in which the two of them would face off. He knew the other would be powerful, he was a jinchuuriki after all, and Naruto knew that he himself was weak, but _They_ would help him, wouldn't _They_?

**YESYESYES. WeWILLhelpyou DESTROYhimKILLHIMbleedhimdry**

This was an Exam- they were put up against others...surely by chance he would have to fight the red-head. His eyes darted up, he turned his head quickly then lowered it back to staring at the ground. He had counted twenty-one genin in that glance. He had read that usually the Third Exam had about eight participants and no doubt there would be a Preliminary round to cut down the numbers to eight. But the numbers were off- would someone have to fight twice?

As if to answer his question, he noticed that the one called Kabuto was turning away from the line and walked toward the door. The others around him look surprised and a little disgusted. He must have quit. Naruto lowered his head back to the ground. Fine, that left it down to twenty- twelve had to go. He just had to make it to the finals. No one would try to stop them , not even the sensei's. His eyes drifted up to look at all the teachers there, looking for the the jounin with the sand mark on his hitai-ate, finding him standing next to a woman with red eyes and black hair. On his other side... Naruto's eyes widened and he ducked his head, heart pounding madly in his ears. The man standing next to him had long black hair pulled up in a high ponytail, pale skin and sharp dark eyes. Change his features a bit, narrow his face, take the hair out of the ponytail...and he looked eerily similar to the man that had attacked them in the Forest of Death. Naruto smoothed down his hood and peeked out at him. Yes... he had the exact same smile too, and he was wearing a Otogakure hitai-ate. It was the same man- he was sure of it.

"What is it Naruto?"

He jumped slightly, just noticing that Nabeshin was at his side. He glanced over at Sasuke, who seemed very intent on whatever the man in front of them was saying, completely unaware that the one that attacked them was now pretending to be a jounin. Should he warn someone? He should at least tell Sasuke, but he didn't want to attract attention by whispering, and he couldn't do the same toward Nabeshin. Later then, he decided. He would tell them during a fight, which was safest.

* * *

She could barely pay attention to the words of the jounin standing in front of them- she was too sick from the mortification that seemed to fill her up to the point of physical illness. Damn Ino! Why couldn't she mind her own business and keep her opinions to herself?

"_What the hell is going on?" Ino charged up to her, face starting to turn red._

"_Calm down," She approached her. "It's nothing to worry about."_

"_Nothing to worry about? Nothing to worry about? I see him treating my best friend like shit and his other Teammate like an object, and you tell me there's nothing to worry about? " Sakura glanced around sickly, noticing that all the occupants of the room were now looking at them, including Sasuke, who's face remained cold and expressionless, as if Ino weren't discussing him. Naruto wasn't looking at them at all, his eyes were focused on something else entirely._

"_Look-" Sakura began._

"_No, you look! You never used to let people walk all over you, especially not boys! Now you need to wake up and see those two for what they really are. They're crazy and they don't care about you."_

"_What happened?" Sakura groaned as Kiba walked over to them, eyes curious._

"_Sasuke's abusing his Teammates! He treats them like shit- I wouldn't be surprised if he's beating them."_

"_Hey-" Sakura tried to cut in, feeling anger starting to rise._

"_He tried to attack me for standing up against him while he choked her! His own teammate!"_

"_Well this isn't much of a surprise," Kiba remarked in disdain. "I've seen the way he treats Uzumaki-"_

"_Just stay out of our business!" she had finally snapped, feeling blood collect in her face._

_Ino paled, her blues eyes narrowing. "Oh wow..." she breathed. "For a second, you sounded just like him." Her lips thinned. "I warned you." Her eyes moved to glare behind Sakura, and she turned to see Sasuke gaze coldly at the blond as he grabbed Naruto by the arm and yanked him toward the now open door, where a chuunin was beginning to usher them through. Most of them were still staring back at them, not wanting to miss any more of the drama that Ino had successfully brought forth._

Damn her.

Sakura blinked several times, glancing carefully at her Teammates. Sasuke was listening intently to what the sickly chuunin was saying while Naruto was staring at the ground, most likely not hearing a word of what the man was saying. She hated that; the world seemed to allow Naruto to move through it with as little attention to detail as possible. She noticed that the heel of his wounded right leg was slightly raised from the ground, and at small intervals it would lower then rise quickly as if he was constantly reminding himself that the leg was indeed injured. But his face did not change; he was standing very close to Sasuke, almost shoulder to shoulder, except that he was an inch or three shorter than the Uchiha. She was standing about three and a half feet from him- there would always seem to be a barrier between them. She was nothing. They held secrets from her, like the strange kid with the brown hair and lazy eyes that had approached them right before the first exams. Or this person named Nabeshin that was occasionally referred to. She glanced around quickly but did not see the boy within the group of them. Her eyes drifted back to the blond.

God she hated him. Her mouth filled with bile. She wished he was dead.

She stopped the thought before it could go any further- it not being a particularly nice thought, and her face flushed in embarrassment over the petty wish.

As if he could hear them, Naruto's head lifted and he looked over at her from behind strands of blond hair. Those bruised blue eyes seemed to trap her- she could not look away from them. She hated that inner strength that he seemed to have, the kind that allowed him to fight despite the fact that he seemed scared of everything and everyone. She hated that he seemed to bear his injuries with a silent grace that she knew she may not have. He blinked watery eyes at her and turned to stare back at the ground, and she was released from his scrutiny.

Suddenly Sasuke stiffened, his dirt smeared face paling as his hand flew to his neck, covering the mark, his shoulders hunching under the apparent pain.

"Sasuke!" she gasped quietly and stepped over to him. "You should tell sensei about this. You should quit before that-" Her words died in her mouth at the look he sent her as he squeezed his neck. Naruto looked over at him, eyes gazing at Sasuke, then drifting away, seeming not to care what was causing his Teammate pain. "But what if something bad happens to you? Nothing good could possibly come from that mark!"

Sasuke's hand shot out and gripped her shoulder as he hissed in gentle undertones, "_Shut your mouth_." Sakura pressed her lips together as she stared back at those dark eyes. Sasuke was different- was even colder now than he was before Orochimaru had given him that mark. She was frightened. "I must fight, and I won't let you or anyone else get in my way. I am an Avenger. _Never_ forget that." His eyes seemed to command her obedience. Who would help her? Not Naruto- as Sasuke released her she saw that the hooded blond was looking their way again, separate from the situation, an uncaring observer- except, Naruto looked back at the ground before him, head lowered as usual, and from his profile she saw his bruised blue eyes dart up, looking at the platform where the Hokage and jounin were. Sakura's eyes darted over to them, and caught what seemed like the ending of a discussion, and brief, wary glances over at Sasuke.

Relief rushed through her. Of course the Hokage was aware of the situation. They would help Sasuke, they would help alleviate some the darkness that seemed to be gathering about them. He would be more reasonable, more open to ideas, more willing to include her on things. There was no helping Uzumaki though.

"There are no rules to these fights, they will continue until one dies or admits defeat. I may intervene in a fight if I feel there is a clear winner. This will help reduce the body count." The sick ninja turned toward a wall, just as a square portion of it rose, revealing a flat screen. "This is our electric scoreboard, which will display the matches. And without further ado, these are the participants of the first match." The board flashed and two names appeared.

Uchiha Sasuke Vs. Akado Yayoi.

Sakura's eyes darted to the older guy in the dark shades as he walked into the center of the room then at Sasuke, who was joining him, the katana held in his right hand.

"If everyone will please clear the floor and head up to the second," the sickly ninja suggested after a cough. Everyone turned and headed for the staircase. Sakura spotted the red-haired sand-nin named Gaara pause to gaze at something over her shoulder, and she quickly turned to see that he was looking at Naruto, who hadn't moved with the others toward the staircase. He was still looking at the floor- or seeming to.

"Come on Naruto," she said, and he turned and looked at her- his eyes glassy and distant. But he had heard her; he turned and followed after her with a limp, smoothing his hood down, his thoughts his own.

* * *

As he moved to the middle of the floor, Sasuke twisted Nabeshin's katana in his hand, getting a feel for the weight, and finding it a bit heavier than his own. The weight was off to him, the blade was an inch or two longer than his own, and he fought back a grimace, wondering if he should have left it with Naruto.

"Sasuke."

He looked up from the blade to see Kakashi-sensei next to him, his eye looking off at the group of genin heading up the stairs.

"Don't use the Sharingan."

Sasuke lowered the katana in surprise, a question about to burst from his lips. Why would Kakashi-sensei say that? But then, of course he knew. The cursed seal. So much for shutting Sakura up. "You know then."

The silver haired jounin nodded. "Yes. If you activate that seal it may kill you." Even now the pain in his neck seemed to increase. Yeah, he could see it doing that- but he could also see himself mastering it. "If that happens, I'm going to jump in and stop the match." He began to walk away toward the stairs. Sasuke's eyes narrowed as he stared in silent contemplation at Nabeshin's blade. This left him in quite a predicament. If the cursed seal reacted to his use of chakra, then not only couldn't he use his sharingan, but he wouldn't be able to use any jutsu as well.

Akado Yayoi stood across from him, the referee at their left. "Ready?" he asked in a rather raspy voice.

Sasuke stared at his reflection in Nabeshin's blade. He would have to completely rely on it then, and once again a wave of appreciation moved through him for his dead cousin. If he had not shown them how to use the blade, he would most likely only have kunai, shuriken, and his fists to fight with. He lowered the blade and grinned at the genin across from him.

"You ready?" the genin asked gruffly, expression hidden behind a cloth that hung from the bridge of his nose. Though he was a leaf-nin, he must have been so far removed from the age group that Sasuke was familiar with. No doubt he was as weak as his quitting Teammate Yakushi.

"Very," he replied.

"Begin," the referee said, jumping back.

Akado immediately tossed several shuriken his way and Sasuke swung the katana, knocking them all away from him. The cursed seal sent a twinge of pain through his neck and chest at the swing but he ignored it as Akado rushed toward him with a fist. With his left hand Sasuke sent several of his own kunai at him then followed them. Akado dodged the kunai and narrowly missed a beheading, jerking his body back and planting a foot in Sasuke's stomach. The Uchiha flew back several feet and landing on the balls of his feet, skidding to a stop, managing to take a breath after it had been knocked out, feeling another surge of pain from the seal, and looked up to see that Akado was almost on him.

He jerked back, trying to give himself enough space to bring up the katana, but he was too late- Akado grabbed him by the throat in a rather crushing grip. His hand chopped down on Sasuke's wrist as he was bringing the katana up. His fingers spasmed on the hilt, going numb and released the weapon-Sasuke could hear it clatter to the ground noisily. But what had his attention, as he brought his knee up to Akado's stomach, was how low his chakra reserves were becoming.

Akado gave a chuckle. "That's right. I'm draining your chakra, my own special technique. You're so pathetic."

Sasuke made himself dead-weight, startling his captor, who jerked forward under his weight, falling into the senbon needle Sasuke produced from his thigh pocket. Akado jumped away, pulling the senbon from his breast with a hiss, and Sasuke was allowed to breath.

"This is it?" he heard someone on the second floor say, and he looked up, searching briefly for the owner of that inquiry. All the faces looked down at him, most indifferent, Ino glared along with Kiba. Shikamaru looked bored and Naruto was staring at him with empty, tired eyes, hands gripping the railing silently.

He wasn't weak- he could hold back the curse seal. All he needed was to take this guy out nice and quick, fast enough that he wouldn't be able to drain him when he made contact. Sasuke summoned his chakra letting it run through him as he charged the other genin. Akado rushed him, left hand holding his right wrist where he was no doubt gathering chakra so that he could drain him. Sasuke put on an extra burst of speed, reaching the other more quickly, savoring the small noise of surprise Akado made as he appeared above and behind him. Sasuke swung a chakra induced kick just below the nape of Akado's neck. There was a snap, he actually felt it reverberate through his heel, and Akado fell forward limply, but Sasuke grabbed an arm just as he felt the hot rush of the cursed seal move up his neck, and tossed the limp genin up into the air like a rag-doll. As he jumped up after him, he saw out of the corner of his eyes, Kakashi-sensei-sensei take a step forward, and he remembered over the wild rush of power that the jounin would stop the fight if the cursed seal took over.

_Just let me finish this_, he thought, and as he kicked Akado to the ground, forced the seal back, forced the burning rush to recede, though it pained him to do so. He landed rather sloppily, his body suddenly feeling more weary than it had just before the cursed seal began to advance, and he looked up to see the referee kneeling by Akado's broken body, the genin's left arm and leg twisted in a clearly broken fashion. The referee gestured for several medic-nins to come over as he straightened from his crouch and turned solemn eyes to Sasuke. "Winner of first match," he called loudly. "Uchiha Sasuke."

Sasuke rubbed his neck and moved as calmly as he could over to Nabeshin's katana, which lay almost forgotten amongst kunai and shuriken.

"Impressive," Kakashi-sensei's voice came from behind him, and he jumped slightly, turning to look up at the man, who had the orange book in his hand. A medic nin approached them.

"Let us take care of your wounds."

Sasuke sheathed Nabeshin's blade and shook his head. "Don't bother- you should pay more attention to Akado." At this the medic looked surprised, and his dark eyes darted to where the other medics were placing Akado in the stretcher. The medic looked back at him, then at Kakashi-sensei, before walking away to the others. Sasuke frowned, then felt his expression go blank as the medic simply pulled the sheet over Akado's head and body, and they silently carried him out of the room.

He had killed him. _My second kill,_ he thought, feeling some unknown emotion flow through him. He glanced up at the other genin, and saw that most were either looking at him in silent contemplation, or staring in silent shock after the body. Naruto was staring after Akado's body too, looking his usual miserable, but then his blue eyes darted over to someone else, and Sasuke realized that he was staring at Gaara again. Naruto's hands, which had been gripping the metal railing began to twist and wring at it as he and the Sand-nin stared at one another. A funny expression was starting to morph on the blond's face, one Sasuke didn't like, and he headed for the stairs, only to have Kakashi-sensei's heavy hand stop him.

"We're going to the back so I can seal up that curse. Come on, don't argue," he said as Sasuke tried to yank his shoulder out of the older man's grip. "I need to take care of that now before it's too late, so don't be acting selfishly."

"Let me just give this to Naruto," he snapped, holding up the katana, and the silver haired jounin conceded, having glanced up at the hooded blond, a frown appearing on his face. Sasuke looked up and saw that Naruto was no longer standing in the same place.

He was in fact, making his way over to the Sand-nin, practically bumping genin out of his way, seeming not to notice them. Gaara was standing there with a particularly wild look in his eyes, the large gourd on his back rattling as if there was something in there, and the sandy haired girl was saying something close to his ear. He did not seem to hear her, and his male teammate was shrinking away as Naruto approached, clearly wanting to separate himself from whatever was about to happen.

Sasuke sped up the stairs, body aching terribly, but knowing he had to stop whatever it was that Naruto was attempting to do. Kakashi-sensei made it up there first, along with a Suna jounin. Kakashi-sensei grabbed Naruto's shoulder, pulling him to the side of his determined path, startling the blond, who jumped, turning wild eyes up at the jounin. He jerked his body from Kakashi-sensei, crashing into the wall, and staying there, eyes darting madly to all the other genin, no doubt believing he was being attacked.

The Suna jounin was standing in front of Gaara, blocking him from view. Sasuke reached Naruto and grabbed his arm, yanking him away from Kakashi-sensei, who was attempting to talk to him, and pulled him a ways away from the others.

"What did I tell you about that guy?" he hissed, shoving Nabeshin's katana into the blond's shaking hands. Naruto was blinking rapidly, as if he was having a hard time seeing. Sasuke shook him roughly. "Get a hold of yourself! You may be next, and you can't lose."

Naruto seemed to hear him, shaking his head as if to clear away whatever was going on in there and smoothed his hood down, since it had partially fallen back, revealing some of his hair. Kakashi-sensei approached, his eye solemn and watchful, darting between the two of them.

"Do you have some vendetta against the Sand-nin that I don't know about, Naruto?" He asked calmly.

Naruto made no reply, and Sasuke only scowled, his body aching even more now, with the extra adrenaline leaking away. The jounin sighed.

"We need to go Sasuke."

Naruto's head darted up in alarm as Sasuke released him and moved toward the stairs. Behind him he saw that the sand jounin was moving away from the red-head, whose face was contorted in rage, green eyes focused on the back of Naruto's head. "I'll be back," he told Naruto, whose face was a sickly yellow. "I'm just going to get this taken care of," he gestured toward his neck. "Then I'll be back. Stay with Sakura, and stop looking at that guy." Said girl was standing not too far from them, eyes clouded over with concern. "Don't lose your fight."

Naruto looked down at the ground, hands gripping Nabeshin's katana to his chest as his shoulders hunched, looking like the poster child for dejection.

He turned and followed Kakashi-sensei down the hall to another door, glancing back to see that Naruto was still standing there, Sakura standing near him, looking like she wanted to say something to him.

"Let's make this quick," he muttered to the man, ignoring the unreadable look the jounin sent his way.

"Yes. Let's."

* * *

Naruto watched Sasuke go behind what was proving to be the second worst headache he had ever felt so far, one that seemed to rocket between both ears, bouncing around inside his skull. His eyes watered from the force of it, _They _were noisy, a cacophony, though this time _They_ didn't block out all sound. He could still hear, just not very well.

"I should probably go see what is going on with Sasuke," a voice said near him, and he glanced up to see that it was Nabeshin, looking concerned. "That mark seems ominously familiar. Should I go?" the ghost asked, looking at him with his seemingly black eyes, rust coming from his mouth. Naruto nodded, cradling the side of his head with his left hand and moved to the rail. He could feel eyes on him, and it wasn't just _Them. _He had foolishly attracted attention when he had gone after the red-head. He had just wanted him so bad, wanted to destroy him, couldn't wait for a match to do it. Now they were looking at him, thinking about him. He wanted to be back in his room, where it was safe.

"Hey Naruto?" It was Sakura, standing near him as two other genin moved to the floor, one looking more familiar than the other. "Did Sasuke tell you about the mark he has on his neck?" Naruto lifted his head and looked at the girl. She swallowed and seemed to make an effort to stare back. "Did he?" she asked again, and he shook his head carefully. She rubbed her arms as if she had a sudden chill. "It was during the fight in the Forest of Death, with that creepy guy." She glanced around quickly, clearly not wanting to be overheard as she stepped closer to him. He resisted the urge to step away, mostly because now he could hear her better since _They_ were making such a racket in his head. "His name is Orochimaru, and he bit Sasuke on the neck, giving him that mark which he called the 'cursed seal.' "

He wasn't listening to her anymore- the name Orochimaru rang some very annoying bells in his already aching head. He had never heard the name spoken before, but he had _read_ it before, in a ninja history book, in fact. Orochimaru had been- or still was, a Sannin- one of the three, though he was exiled for some crimes- experimenting on children, he believed. His blue eyes darted to where all the jounin and the Hokage stood, and the man who he now understood was Orochimaru, was gone. His eyes fell on a ninja, the one from the first Exam, the one with scars on his face, and their eyes connected. Naruto stepped back from the railing, out of sight.

Sakura looked like she was about to say more, but there was an explosion down below, where a match had been taking place. Sakura turned, looking down at the match. "Oh, Shino won."

He didn't know or care to know who Shino was.

From the corner of his eye he saw Kakashi-sensei approach, with no Sasuke.

"Is Sasuke-kun alright?" Sakura asked anxiously.

"Yep," Kakashi-sensei replied almost lazily. "He's resting in a hospital bed right now."

Naruto turned toward the door they had gone through, hoping to find Sasuke and get away from the other jinchuuriki before he did something to attract attention again, but was stopped by a hand on his shoulder. Naruto shied away from it, putting too much weight on his wounded leg again, causing him to stumble.

"You should stay here," the silver haired jounin said in an unusually gentle voice. "Your match could be next." His dark eye drifted to Naruto's bandaged leg, and his brow furrowed in concern. Bile rose in Naruto's mouth, and he turned away, smoothing down his hood as he stared at the cracks in the wall he was leaning against attempting to ride the headache.

"Winner, Kankuro."

He wished he could get away from all these villagers- hated being around them. He was sure wherever Sasuke was, it was quiet, and there weren't any others around.

"Don't you want to see Sakura fight?" Kakashi-sensei's voice was too loud, making him jump, but he didn't turn to acknowledge that he had heard the man. He wished he was away, wished he was in his room, wished he was killing the red-head- He shook his head, trying to banish the thought before he turned to seek the other out. He had to wait- he would have his chance, he would get to fight the jinchuuriki. His headache eased a little, and sounds that he couldn't hear were now more audible- the sound of kunai striking one another, female grunts. Naruto lifted his head and pushed away from the wall, moving toward the rail until he could see the fight.

Sakura was fighting the noisy blond girl, both were beating each other bloody, though-he took a step closer, it seemed that Sakura was winning. She was certainly a better and more aggressive fighter than the blond, better than he remembered actually, and apparently better than the blond girl remembered too.

Naruto watched as Sakura grabbed the other girl by her long ponytail and yanked her head around, punching her in the face. The blond's head rocked back, face twisted in pain as her lip split, leg coming up and hooking around Sakura's neck. Both girls fell heavily to the ground, Sakura trying to roll out from under the blond, but the girl squeezed her leg, trapping Sakura for a brief moment as she lifted her hands in the form of a seal.

"Shintenshin no Jutsu," she called, and immediately both girls went limp. Then Sakura rolled out from under the blond's leg, standing up quickly with a grin that turned sour as she looked up at them, her eyes falling on him. Naruto stared back at the angry pale green eyes for a moment, seeing the hatred in them, then slipped away from the rail back into the gloom. He supposed Sakura had lost then. He didn't care- he just wanted to fight the red-head, then go home. Things would be good if he could do this. He headed farther down the hall just as a cramp seized his stomach, turning it into knots. He gagged, staggering against the wall, clutching his stomach with his other hand as he dry heaved through two more cramps. His headache was now worse than ever, his eyes dripped tears from the pressure of each heave. _They_ were louder than ever- he couldn't hear anything but _Them._

Two more cramps came then went- he could barely breath over the heaving...and then, it was as if something broke in him, like a damn being flooded over, chakra rushed through his body, from the very tips of his hair, which stood on end, down to the tips of his toes. The constant burning of his wounded leg stopped- he could feel the skin knit properly together. The exhaustion, bruises, and scrapes disappeared, his spine stiffening so that he was standing ramrod straight. His fingers dug into the wall that he had been kneeling against as he blinked rapidly. _They_ had dropped down to an excited murmur, _Their_ anticipation running through him. _They_ were making him ready, ready to fight the red-headed jinchuuriki .

He turned to see that the leaf genin were crowding near Sakura and the blond, who were both laying against the wall up on the second floor.

"I can't believe they knocked each other out!" the chubby genin from Team Ten exclaimed as he kneeled down next to the blond girl.

"They'll be fine," Kakashi-sensei was saying, though he gestured for a medic to come, pointing at the blond girl's swollen and bloody face.

The other boy, possibly named Shikamaru- Naruto wasn't completely sure, stood up and sighed. "If not for Ino's kekkai genkai, I'm pretty sure Sakura would have won this fight. She's way more tough than I remember."

"Why thank you," Kakashi-sensei said cheerfully, pulling out the orange book as he too stood up. The one named Shikamaru turned as if looking for someone, and seemed to spot him, looking over at Naruto. Naruto lowered his head, smoothing down his hood, but his eyes darted about, searching for the other jinchuuriki. He spotted him- there he was- his jounin sensei still standing next to him. The red head was staring back at him, the whites of his eyes mostly red from agitated blood vessels.

He wanted to fly over there- he felt like he could fly right now, felt like a cup completely full to the rim with water. Any second it felt like chakra would come pouring out of him. He gripped Nabeshin's katana and wrung the hilt with his fingers. Mustn't go ever there, mustn't try to kill him yet.

"Aren't you going to make sure that your Teammate is okay?" Shikamaru asked, having walked over to him.

Naruto tore his eyes away from the red-head to look at the boy. His hands were in his pockets, his expression looking bored, but his eyes were sharp and they studied Naruto. Naruto glanced over at Sakura, still unconscious, noticing that others were back at the rails, looking down at what seemed to be another match. A gust of wind blew through the whole area, blowing back his hood. It felt good against his flushed skin, but he pulled his hood back up to cover his hair, which was still standing on end. Another gust came along with the clatter of weapons and Shikamaru turned and moved to the railing to see the fight.

"Winner, Temari."

"Ugh, so troublesome," Shikamaru muttered, looking down at the commotion that was starting down below. A Leaf girl had lost, and apparently the green clad boy didn't appreciate how the Suna girl had treated her.

"She gave her all in that battle! How could you treat her like that?"

The Suna girl leaned against her large fan and sneered. "Shut up loser and get her out of here." A look of rage flew through the green boy's face- one second he had been holding his Teammate, the next he was aiming a spinning kick at the girl, who held up her fan and blocked it.

"Lee, stop!" A similarly clad jounin dropped down to the first floor and approached. They looked like father and son.

Suddenly the red-head spoke. "Temari you've been declared the winner. Stop wasting time and get up here."

Naruto turned away and stared at a wall, purposefully giving the red-head his back. He mustn't look at him anymore. He was still so full of chakra, so ready to leap down there and fight everyone- he felt like he could clean the whole Uchiha compound twice over. He hoped he was next, he hoped it was against the red-head. He hoped-

Some more words were exchanged. And then he heard Shikamaru groan. He looked at the scoreboard.

Nara Shikamaru vs Kin Tsuchi.

He shut his eyes tight as a roar of anger rushed through him, some from _Them_, but some of his own. He _needed_ to fight the Suna-nin! He needed to fight him so that he could go home, back to his room, back to covered windows- he buried his head in his hands, nails digging into his scalp in frustration.

"Naruto?" He didn't open his eyes or lift his head at Nabeshin's voice. "I've got some bad news. I followed Sasuke, and Hatake-san put _another_ seal over the cursed seal, one that is supposed to contain the cursed seal's power should Sasuke _accidentally_ activate it. But, according to your sensei, it will only be as effective as Sasuke's will. If Sasuke wants the cursed seal to take over, then..."

Naruto opened his eyes to see Shikamaru and his opponent standing across from one another. Both took out a shuriken and tossed it at one another. He supposed that must have been why Sasuke hadn't used any jutsu when he had fought that other Leaf-nin.

"The cursed seal came from this guy named Orochimaru, who used to be a Leaf Shinobi, but was banished, and is now the Kage for Hidden Sound. I can't believe Kakashi was going to fight him..." Nabeshin seemed to be talking to himself for a moment. "Anyway, I took the liberty of following him around a bit- damn it's been a long time since I've seen that guy, and I've got the sense that he's planning something big- way big. I'm sure the Hokage knows about it since Miturashi Anko let them know that he was in the Forest of Death." Nabeshin was silent a moment. "Though I couldn't care less if he's going to attack this village, I don't want that guy anywhere _near_ Sasuke again. That cursed seal is bad news- nothing good could possibly come from the attentions of that man- er- Naruto?"

Just then a hand fell on his shoulder- why were people touching him so much today?- and he lowered his hands from his head and looked up to see that it was Kakashi-sensei again, looking concerned. He immediately noticed that everyone in the area was looking at him.

"Didn't you hear us calling you? You're up." Kakashi-sensei gestured toward the scoreboard, where his name and Inuzuka Kiba- a familiar name- was. His eyes darted to everyone- Shikamaru was back on the second floor looking a bit bloodier than when he had left- Ino and Sakura were conscious, both watching him but standing far from one another. "Do you want to forfeit?" Kakashi-sensei asked gently. Naruto shook his head, disappointment rushing through him. He had hoped he would be fighting the red-head, but it was apparently not meant to be. He would have to fight him in the finals and in the meantime, he needed something to take the edge off, let out a little bit of chakra so he wouldn't feel like he was going to explode.

Inuzuka and his dog- oh it was him, the one from Team Eight, was already down there, the white puppy in his arms, looking up at him. Naruto picked up Nabeshin's katana, which he had dropped, and hopped onto the rails, dropping down to the first floor. He landed on the balls of his feet, then straightened, frowning. Why hadn't he just taken the stairs?

"Are you ready?" the referee asked. Naruto smoothed down his hood and nodded, looking at Inuzuka from behind his bangs. The genin's face was unreadable as he stood there with the canine in his arms. "Alright. Begin!" The referee jumped back out of the way. Naruto unsheathed Nabeshin's blade and looked over at his opponent.

"We'll go easy on him eh Akamaru? Take him out with one punch. Shouldn't be too hard." The small puppy yipped, jumping from his arms to the ground. Naruto gazed at the dog, then at Inuzuka. He had seen him a couple times- he was always with the dog, apparently did missions with it. It was like an extension of him, like an arm or leg. If he cut it off, he imagined it would bleed profusely. The image of blood sent a rush of pleasure through him, and he shuddered, shaking his head just as Inuzuka struck. Naruto saw a fist come toward his face, and he tried to turn away, but he was too slow, and he was hit, the force of the blow knocking him several feet away.

The whole right side of his face went numb. He shook his head quickly, blinking away the black spots in his vision.

"Just forfeit before we have to do some serious damage to the class mental case," Inuzuka suggested, not unkindly.

Naruto did not reply, instead charging nimbly at the boy, dodging the dog and swinging the katana. Inuzuka slipped out of the way, Naruto only clipping a piece of the fur from around his hood and dodging another blow aimed at his head. Naruto leaped back from both boy and dog, sheathing Nabeshin's blade and making the signs for the Kage bunshin. He created three clones sending them to attack the dog boy, throwing punches and kicks. He blocked several, was hit by plenty, and guffawed at the weak hits. Naruto knew that unless the clones were doing jutsu, they physically would not do much damage. He simply didn't have the muscles in his arms and legs to cause pain like Sasuke did- if he wanted a hit to count, he always had to put chakra behind it- and the clones were unwilling to expend that much- especially when their goal was merely to distract the dog-boy.

The dog grabbed one of the clones by the leg, growling, and the clone paused to kick the dog away, putting some chakra behind the hit so that the dog yelped loudly. "Hey!" Kiba snapped, punching one clone away forcefully, then jumped over to the puppy. "You okay?" he asked the dog as Naruto leaped above them and a clone grabbed Inuzuka's leg. The dog boy turned aggressively toward the clone, but must have seen his shadow as he brought the katana down; the dog boy rolled out of the way, twisting his ankle from the clones grip- but not before Naruto got a piece of him. Though the katana was not his own, and felt strange to fight with, for that particular second, it felt like a mere extension of his arm. He felt the blade pass through flesh and bone, severing Inuzuka's pinky finger as he leaped out of the way, avoiding the clones, the puppy in his other arm.

Naruto stared down at the bloody digit, the droplets of blood that sprinkled around it. The blood was dark against the dirty floor. If only it were the red-head's blood. His lips turned up slightly.

"Quadruped no jutsu!" he looked up to see the dog boy crouching down like an animal on the ground, and with surprising speed he crashed into two of the clones, knocking them back. They staggered, frowned, then dissipated.

Inuzuka turned to him with a growl, canines seeming larger and longer than before. "Don't underestimate me- or Akamaru!" he growled. And it seemed that he was about to charge Naruto, leaning forward on both hands, then winced in pain, looking down at his right hand. His eyes went wide as he lifted the bloody, pinky-less hand up, seeming to just realize he was missing a digit. The dog barked madly at him, and Inuzuka's eyes darted to Naruto's feet, where his pinky lay next to.

"You're going to pay for that finger," he whispered harshly, rage passing through his face. Naruto cringed. It was easy to believe. But Naruto now understood Inuzuka's rather obvious weakness. The dog.

With his left hand the dog boy produced two pills, soldier pills, and tossed one to the puppy and swallowed one himself. Immediately the puppy's fur turned crimson, rising on it's back like an angered cat. It jumped on Inuzuka's back as he crouched there, barking as the dog boy made a seal. Then there were two Inuzuka's, looking more feral than ever.

"Quadruped no jutsu!" With more speed than before, both attacked, clawed hands crushing the ground where Naruto stood as the hooded blond leaped into the air, avoiding their attacks. Chagrin rushed through him- he had been hoping to keep a good eye on the dog- but now, with the two leaping around him, he couldn't tell which one was the dog and which was the actual human. One clawed hand caught him in the shoulder, twisting him to the ground. Naruto smacked onto the floor and rolled as he felt them come upon him, quickly doing a katon seal as he turned over on his back, seeing that one was directly above him. He brought his fingers to his mouth and blew a billow of fire directly into the dog boy, engulfing him in fire. The Inuzuka fell back, giving a rather human howl, and the other leaped upon him, batting away at the flames that burned away at his jacket. That was the one Naruto wanted- the one that would end this fight in his favor.

Naruto jumped to his feet, snatched the fallen katana, and with a burst of chakra to his legs and feet, rushed up to the one Inuzuka who was busy rolling the other to put out the flames- the one who wasn't cursing.

"Watch out!" Someone called, a female voice, and the dog in the guise of a human turned at that moment- saw the blade rushing toward him, and made to leap out of the way, but was too late. Naruto felt the blade pass through bone, heard the dog-like squeal as the dog fell away from his leg, which Naruto had managed to sever. The jutsu around the dog fell away, and once again it was a small white puppy minus one leg. The leg, which fell a few feet away, popped, and was once again the leg of a small dog.

Naruto moved over to the leg, and fought the urge to shudder as he picked it up with his hand- though he first covered that hand with his sweater so he didn't touch the dog's leg.

"AKAMARU!" The scream made Naruto jump, and he turned to see that the fire about Inuzuka had been put out, as well as his jutsu, leaving him with first and second degree burns, all superficial really- though he didn't seem to notice. His eyes were all for the dog bleeding profusely on the ground. He jumped to his feet and dropped down to the dog, seeming stuck between wanting to pick it up and being afraid to. Inuzuka pulled off his ruined bulky jacket, revealing a black shirt underneath as he frantically wrapped the bloody puppy up in it. "I need a medic!" he called frantically, standing up, eyes darting frantically about. The referee approached, giving a little cough.

"Do you forfeit this fight?" he asked. "The medic can't help unless the fight is over."

Inuzuka spun, eyes falling on him, looking as if he couldn't decide. Then his eyes fell on the leg dangling from Naruto's covered hand.

"Give that to me," he hissed venomously, taking a step toward him, but the referee grabbed his shoulder, stopping him.

"Do you forfeit?" The referee asked again. "Make it quick- your dog doesn't have much time."

The dog boy's face almost seemed to crumble as he looked down at the unconscious dog. "Yeah," he said gently. "I'm out." Then the rage returned to his face as he looked back over at Naruto. "Give me his leg." He commanded.

Naruto pulled his hood up over his head, smoothing it down as he looked down at the leg in his grasp. If only it had been the red-head. He looked up at the second floor where he knew the red-head was. They looked at one another, he watched as his folded arms clenched tighter as he stared back down at him. What were the odds that they would fight one another in the finals? What if they didn't? What if he was made to fight someone else? Pain lanced through him as _They_ began to stir into the frenzy.

_Forget the Exam's_, he thought. They weren't important. He would have to fight him now.

"I'll take that," someone was gently tugging at the leg still in his hand. Naruto looked down at the hand, then followed it up to the person who it belonged to. The woman with red eyes. He released the hand and quickly moved away from her, passing Nabeshin as he headed for the stairs.

"Winner: Uzumaki Naruto."

Naruto paled. They had just said his name aloud. He pace quickened, and he rushed up the stairs. Everyone would be thinking about him. He moved in the opposite direction of everyone else, turning down the hall in which he had seen Sasuke go.

"Sakura's calling you," Nabeshin said behind him. Naruto paused, creating a clone and left it leaning against the wall. Ahead the hall split two ways- one left and the other right. "This way," Nabeshin directed, and he followed the ghost down a series of halls. _They_ raged- Naruto put a hand to his chest- his heart was pounding in a funny way.

**WEMUSTKILLHIM.**

"Not now," Naruto gasped, vision blurring- heart beating in a strange way. He felt faint- the complete opposite of how he had felt ten minutes before. "They will stop me- they will stop us. Not yet, please not yet," he pleaded.

"Who are you?" he looked up to see three anbu standing around a door, faces covered in similar looking masks. Naruto hunched his shoulders and blinked at them.

"I think this is the part where you introduce yourself as Sasuke's Teammate," Nabeshin sighed. "Tell them Kakashi sent you."

Naruto hesitantly repeated this, looking at them from behind his bangs as they seemed to motionlessly scrutinize him. Then one looked at the other, they seemed to come to a silent agreement, and one held out his hand.

"Give me the katana. No weapons allowed inside." Naruto handed the katana over quickly, and one opened the door. "Don't disturb the patient." One said in a rather ominous voice, and Naruto hurried inside, squinting at the brightness of the room, and blanching at the sight of the large windows to his left.

Sasuke lay in a bed in the middle of the room, eyes covered by a white cloth, mouth and nose engulfed by an oxygen mask. Naruto moved to the other side of the bed and sat down on the floor next to the oxygen machine, back leaning against the bed, and buried his head in his hands, hoping to ride out the rage and anger that made his head and heart feel funny.

"I'm going to watch the rest of the fights," Nabeshin said unnecessarily, and he cracked open an eye. He knew that the ghost would be going for the clone he had left behind. He wasn't stupid.

He was not sure how much time had passed since his arriving there, how long he had been pleading with _Them_ to wait for the demise of the red-head, but he suddenly became aware that he and Sasuke were not alone in the room any longer. "There is such a thing as being too outstanding," a voice said conversationally. "And we both stood out too much." He lifted his head from his hands and turned, looking up into the surprised face of a rather familiar person. For a second, he could not place who he was and as he was trying to put a name to the teenager with the glasses, noticed that there was a scalpel in his hand that was angled toward Sasuke's exposed neck.

"You are just full of surprises, aren't you," the intruder commented, mouth turning up into a smirk. Naruto's eyes drifted to the three dead anbu in the doorway. "Stay out of my way if you want to live kid," the grey-haired teenager said just as the scalpel disappeared from his hand. Naruto saw Kakashi-sensei standing near the fallen anbu, the knife in his hand. The teenager did not seem to be surprised. Naruto's hands shot out on their own and grabbed Sasuke's shoulders, dragging the boy across the bed and pulling him down on top of him. Quickly rolling Sasuke off of him, he then crawled under the bed and dragged the Uchiha under there with him. The oxygen mask was yanked from his face and to his surprise he heard a wheeze come from his chest.

"Who the hell are you?" he heard Kakashi-sensei ask coldly as he reached out over Sasuke's body and pulled at the mask, trying to get the machine to move closer so that it could reach him properly. While he struggled with this the conversation progressed. Yakushi Kabuto- that was his name. He had forfeit just as the prelim's had started.

He yanked harder on the cord, and finally the square oxygen machine moved on loud squeaky wheels- halting the conversation. Naruto paused, half expecting the bed to go flying, hearing quick movement, then the sound of shattering glass as he quickly placed the oxygen mask over Sasuke's nose and mouth- his lips were kind of looking blue.

The room was silent again. Naruto turned his head, looking through the other side of the bed, seeing nothing different...except one of the dead anbu had been moved, and one of the windows were broken. He watched a pair of feet turn from facing the window and walk over to the bed. The person kneeled down.

"You've gotten real good with the Kage Bunshin, Naruto." Kakashi-sensei's eye was shut in a cheerful way. "I could have sworn you were out there watching the last three fights." Naruto said nothing, staring back at the man from under the bed. The jounin sighed. "Well, let's get Sasuke out from under there."

Naruto didn't particularly want to come out from under the bed, but he knew that Sasuke couldn't very well stay under there, and so he crawled out. Kakashi-sensei moved around the side of the bed where the oxygen machine was and pulled Sasuke from under there, placing him carefully on the bed.

Naruto turned and looked at the anbu, eyes darting around, searching for Nabeshin's katana. He stepped toward the door, stepping carefully around large splatters of blood as he peeked out the open door, spying the katana half stuck in the hallway wall. He moved over to it quickly and tried to pull it out of the wall, an unsuccessful ordeal- it was too deep. He paused as he saw several ninja approach quickly, battle in their eyes. He quickly released the hilt and lowered his head as they passed, one pausing to look at him before moving on into the room. He grabbed the hilt, putting his foot against the wall and pulled with all his strength. The katana came free quite suddenly, and he staggered back, falling on his behind. Nabeshin came around the corner, disguised as the brown-haired boy, his mouth turned down. Naruto got to his feet.

"More bad news Naruto," he said, shoving his hands in his pockets. "You'll be fighting Hyuga Neji in the Finals."

Naruto almost choked on his own rage- but combined with _Theirs, _it was almost debilitating. "_No! He's mine! He's MINE!" _He saw Nabeshin shy away but didn't care. He swung the blade at the wall he had just pulled it from, hacking away at it, channeling his rage into every swing. He wasn't used to being so angry- he wasn't used to such emotion. Anger belonged to _Them, _not to him. But he wanted this to be over- he could not be plagued by this wanting for the rest of his life- he was already miserable as it was.

Someone yanked the katana from his hands, and he turned on them, ready to attack, but froze when he saw it was the scarred man. The rage left him cold and hollow as he stared up into those black eye.

"You gonna be okay?"

Naruto turned and fled from the hall.

* * *

Nabeshin watched Naruto disappear around the corner before he looked back at the Morino Ibiki, who loomed in the hallway, looking curious as he held Nabeshin's katana. He wanted to follow Naruto, but was reluctant to leave without his blade- but how was he to get it without being asked questions?

"Ibiki-san," someone called from the room and the Interrogation Squad Leader turned away, tossing the katana carelessly to him. Nabeshin caught the blade- wow, that had been easy, and quickly made an exit before someone else deigned to ask who he was.

He returned to where most of the genin were heading out- they all had a month to train and prepare for the Finals. He paused as he saw Gaara's eyes dart around as he obviously searched for Naruto. Nabeshin grimaced. He didn't know why the Sand jinchuuriki looked so normal while Naruto looked so frightening, but he wished whatever was going on between them would stop. Naruto looked most terrifying whenever he was looking at Gaara.

"Hey! You!" Nabeshin turned as Sakura approached him, her face determined. "Who are you?" she demanded to know.

Nabeshin smiled. "I'm Naruto's cousin, Uzumaki Nabeshin. How's it going?"

The girl looked completely at a loss. "N-Naruto has a cousin?"

"Yeah, I know right? He's so antisocial. Anyway, I'm in town and figured I'd help him out since he's got _issues,_" he gave her a charming smile.

A funny look came over her. "You said your name is Nabeshin? Were...were you helping us in the Forest of Death?"

Nabeshin shook his head. "Nope, can't possibly know what you're talking about. Well I gotta go. See you later!" He waved and quickly rushed off before she could ask anymore questions, chuckling to himself.

Uzumaki Nabeshin. What a laugh.

* * *

Deep in the thick foliage of the Forest of Death, a small figure slipped silently from behind the trunk of a rather large tree, seeming almost a part of the thick shadows. It moved confidently through the darkness, stepping around the rotting flesh of the giant snake as it searched patiently through the mess. Tucked under one arm was a katana, well used and still wet with blood that gleamed in a patch of moonlight as it paused, crouching down and pushing aside a rather large chunk of rotting meat, revealing another katana. It wiped the second blade against its pants leg and strapped it to the back of its black sweater.

There was a snap of a twig and the small figure froze, turning slowly toward the source of the noise, blue eyes and pale hair gleaming in the patch of moonlight. A smile graced its hollow face.

**TBC**

**Because for the most part, Naruto is the king of not paying attention, I was able to skip through most of the fights. There are no pairings in this fic.**


	17. Chapter 17

Disclaimer: Naruto does not belong to Kirsdarkenvar

**The Ghost and the Darkness**

**AN: A _very_ revealing chapter, this one...Oh and...lots of dialogue. Sorry.**

**Chapter 17**

Sasuke slept with his mouth closed and liked to sleep on his sides- this was something that Naruto had observed over the years, which meant that he didn't snore. In fact, the only time Sasuke _did_ snore was when he had a cold and _had_ to sleep on his back. And of course, he was usually too miserable to get proper sleep so even that was short lived and didn't happen very often. The thing was, even though the Uchiha didn't snore, he still made noise when he slept, noise that Naruto had gotten used to, noise that was eerily absent in the room. It had been a long time since the hooded blond had been alone, long enough that the absence of Sasuke's breathing was making him nervous. Though _They_ were a hot murmur in his head, the silence of the room seemed oppressive, and as he sat in his corner rocking, he could not take his eyes off of the Uchiha's empty bed.

**GAARAGAARAGAARA**, _They_ howled, and Naruto cradled his head in misery against the constant obsession with the other Jinchuuriki. If only he had killed him earlier, then _They_ would not make him suffer over it. Naruto shot to his feet and left the room, heading down the stairs and into the kitchen, grabbing his cleaning supplies from under the sink and began to make quick work of the house, not bothering to use clones this time. He wanted to do everything himself.

Three hours later, and the house was satisfactory, but his head still hurt, and _They_ were still speaking of the red-head. Grabbing a broom, he stepped out onto the porch to sweep away the dust and leaves that had collected there while he and Sasuke had been away.

Nabeshin was sitting on the steps, back to him, the disgusting stench of cigarettes hitting the hooded blond's nose immediately. The ghost was henged as himself, but without the pieces of his brain exposed, looking quite alive. With each exhale, the smoke came out black instead of white, and to Naruto, it smelled like decay. He seemed to be staring at the nearest Uchiha, the woman with the baby, who was still crying, cradling the silent child in her bloody arms. Naruto lowered his hood and began to sweep the dust from the porch, startling the smoking ghost, who turned his head to look back at him.

"Sasuke shouldn't be out for too long," the ghost said, standing up and stretching. Naruto continued to sweep as the ghost seemed to scrutinize him. "He'll be fighting the jinchuuriki Gaara in the Finals."

Rage flew through him, and there was a cracking sound, the bottom half of the broom falling to the wooden porch, while the other piece stayed in his bony hands. Naruto slowly released the handle, letting it clatter to the wooden floor, to look at his shaking palms, filled with splinters.

"I've been following some of Orochimaru's subordinates around," Nabeshin continued, sounding very ill at ease, "and it seems that he has planned an invasion with the Suna-nins. I have to go look more deeply into this, but I just wanted to let you know that it's supposed to be triggered during the final fight between Gaara of the Sand and Sasuke." Naruto looked up at him from behind his hair. The man gave him an uneasy smile. "What I'm saying is, in all the chaos, no one is going to stop you from fighting him."

_They_ quieted. This was true! In war, no one would stop him from attacking an enemy! Relief flooded through him, such relief that he felt muscles loosen in his shoulders. He would have his chance. Perhaps another ninja would go tell someone of an impending attack, but Naruto would not- he was not going to let anything interfere with this chance- a chance for relief against _Their_ fury and obsession.

He would have his chance.

The only time Kakashi bothered to go anywhere near the Yamanaka's flower shop was when he was visiting a grave, so he tended to associated the floral death trap as a rather morbid place, and though he wasn't there for some grave flowers, he was just as unhappy as if he were. So it was to his minor relief when his eye fell on the very person he had been looking for as he reluctantly stepped into an allergenic's nightmare.

"Inoichi," he greeted softly as he approached the counter. The blond man was leaning over a sheet of paper- from his quick glance he could see the calculated numbers of inventory in neat lines. The Interrogations Squad member lifted sharp blue eyes from the paper and gave him a careful smile.

"Kakashi," he gave him a nod. "Here for the usual?"

"No thank you. Actually, I'm here for you." His words got the response he expected, a snort of amusement.

"Not for sale," the man said, chuckling as he put the paper away and turned to him fully. "But what can I do for you?"

"I was hoping to borrow you for the day, while I still have the chance, to check out the mental state of one of my students."

Inoichi nodded knowingly. "The Uchiha kid? Isn't he still in the hospital?"

"No and yes," he leaned against the counter, glancing at a patron who was in the process of shoving a rose up her nostrils. "My other student, Uzumaki Naruto, is in need of a full evaluation." He watched the puzzled frown pass over theYamanaka's face.

"Uzumaki...That name sounds vaguely familiar. I profess that I'm not particularly familiar with Team Seven- aside from that Haruno girl my daughter keeps raving about and-"

"I heard that," a flat voice interrupted as the Yamanaka girl entered from the back room, a large vase tucked under one arm. Her face was set in a scowl, one that intensified as her pale blue eyes fell on him. "Maybe you should bring in your whole team while your at it," she snapped as she passed by them and went further into the floral jungle beyond. It had been two days since the Prelims, and he was sure that the extremely talkative girl had worn her father's ears down with her harping.

Inoichi sighed and rolled his eyes, moving from behind the counter and heading for the door. "A full evaluation, you say? Why don't you take him to the Ward down at the hospital? I know some great Psychiatrists there that I can refer you to. My cousin, Koji is excellent for genin with PTSD-"

Kakashi shook his head, stuffing both hands in his pockets. "He won't be willing. You can think of him as an enemy ninja- completely unwilling to give up any information."

A gleam appeared in the blond mans eyes and he cracked his knuckles in clear anticipation. "This sounds interesting," he cut him off as he opened his mouth, "Don't tell me what is wrong with him- it'll ruin the chase."

Kakashi gave a small grunt of unhappiness. He had put this off as long as he could, but no longer would he turn a blind eye to Naruto's unstable behavior- no caring sensei would. But what would he do with Inoichi's diagnosis? What if Naruto's instability was as debilitating as he imagined? Would he have him removed? He grimaced- what hell would the Uchiha put him through if he tried? And then there was replacing him with another...Replacing Kaori had been enough for him .

Kakashi opened the gates when they arrived at the entrance of the compound, allowing the Yamanaka to step through before he closed the gate behind him. The fact of the matter was that he believed that something wasn't quite right with the Seal that held the Kyuubi- he was sure that this contributed to Naruto's mental instability, and if so, could it be fixed? When was the last time the Hokage had looked at it? He himself had inspected it that day in Wave, when Naruto had been lying before him, emaciated and full of pins. He had looked it over- but he was no seal-master, he couldn't be sure.

"Huh," Inoichi's voice shook him from his dark thoughts, and he looked around, realizing he had gone off the correct path and led them down a winding path between houses. He turned them in a direction he knew the main house was. "This is the first time I've been in here," Kakashi raised a brow. "You know how the Uchiha's were- they would have kept the Hokage out if they could have gotten away with it."

As they came up the side of a house, Kakashi froze upon hearing a male voice coming from around the bend, one that clearly didn't belong to Naruto. His hand shot up, making Yamanaka stop. They carefully moved to the side of the house and peered around the corner. At a bit of a distance was the main house, Naruto was standing on the porch before a tall man wearing standard ninja attire, sporting short black hair and pale skin. Something about him was eerily familiar. He lifted a cigarette to his mouth and inhaled, the end of the stick lighting up, then he exhaled, and black smoke came from his lips and nose.

There was an intake of breath at his side, and he turned to see Inoichi's pale face, eyes wide but staring intently at the unknown man.

"Impossible," he breathed. "I know that man..."

Kakashi looked back at the man who was achingly familiar. Naruto's pale blue eyes followed the cigarette to the man's lips, a look of disgust passing through his unhappy face, and it seemed that the man halted in taking another swig, a look of nervousness coming upon his face. He dropped the cigarette and stepped on it, grounding it into the dirt. "Who is he?"

Inoichi was looking very pale. "Nabeshin...Uchiha Nabeshin- I swear that's him!"

An Uchiha- yes, he had the familiar features of the almost dead clan. Kakashi stealthily moved behind the house, gaining closer ground so he could hear what this supposed dead man was saying to _his_ student. Both jounin moved up the side of the main house, staying behind the high bushes that ran along the side of the main house,

"...talk it over with Sasuke before you do anything though. I don't think you have the strength to kill him by yourself. I give it a day or two before he is conscious." Seeing him closer, and from the front- yes, he was clearly an Uchiha, even if a strange haze of reddish brown smoke was coming from his mouth with every word, as if his lungs were still full of smoke.

"It's him." Inoichi whispered, voice empty. The Uchiha opened his mouth as if to speak- but both his and Naruto's hooded head jerked to the left, as if hearing something, then the supposedly dead Uchiha turned and looked directly at the bushes were they were hidden. His hand flew to the katana at his side, and Kakashi leaped from the bushes, intent on getting the man away from his student. The Uchiha leaped back, katana unsheathed, and as Kakashi drew his kunai, the man turned the blade on himself and impaled himself through the chest completely, pale face twisted in rage.

The jounin reached out to grab his arm as he fell back, but was pushed back by a wave of chakra and smoke as the man popped away, his katana clattering on the ground. He turned to Naruto, moving toward his student in case another bunshin came out, and saw as his student staggered back, eyes flashing red and giving a quick series of nasty coughs before turning and rushing toward the doors of the main house.

Inoichi stopped the kid, grabbing an arm and yanking the small kid back, inwardly wincing when the kids' body collided into his own. He hadn't expected him to be such a lightweight, but his fingers, which were gripping the boy around the bicep, were touching. The kid had that little muscle!

He expected the kid to gain his bearings so he could look the small guy over and make sure he wasn't harmed by Nabeshin- just thinking the name sent a chill down his spine- but the kid did the complete opposite. Instead the kid attempted to jab him in the gut with his elbow as Hatake made the signs for a bunshin-no doubt to search the area for the Uchiha. Inoichi twisted the boy around so that a bony arm was up behind his back. "Relax kid, we're not going to hurt you. We're-"

The kid didn't seem to be listening- instead he was trying to break free from his grip, pulling dangerously on the arm- he could feel the thin bones creaking ominously.

"Naruto," Kakashi called calmly, just as a whine of desperation passed the boy's seemingly bloodless, cracked lips. Hatake wasn't kidding about the instability of this kid! He didn't seem to care that his own sensei was trying to calm him down. Inoichi passed the boy to his sensei, a frown on his face as he watched the ninja try to bring reason to the almost hysterical child. Uzumaki Naruto...the name was hanging around the edges of his mind- did he know someone with that last name?

Giving up, the man wrapped two arms around the child, holding him with his back against his chest, facing Inoichi. "Now's as good a time as any," Kakashi grumbled. Though his face was mostly hidden, it was easy to see how upset he was by his student's terror.

And the kid did looked terrified- he was practically hyperventilating, pale blue eyes bloodshot and wild. Inoichi stepped forward and dropped a hand on the top of Naruto's head, noticing the kid's hair for the first time. It was thin and brittle, not dirty, for the kid smelled like cleanser, but it lacked the luster of healthy hair, wispy and chopped at odd lengths.

He activated the Mind Reading jutsu, sucking in a breath as it felt like he was being propelled forward. It was the most uncomfortable part of the technique, the feeling of being thrust forward uncontrollably when he knew that he was really standing before Kakashi and his upset student. Beyond that though, when his feet landed himself in someone's mind- that was the part that he loved. Every person's mindscape was different, usually matching the personality of the person it belonged to. Over the many interrogations that Inoichi had participated in, he had found that the mindscapes that least mirrored the person's personality were the ones that were dangerous. On the many occasions that they had captured spies, they of course found completely different personalities hidden beneath the surface of their cover. One he particularly remembered was a kunoichi from Iwa, who had married a Konohan merchant in an attempt to acquire secrets from Hidden Leaf. She'd had three children by the time her cover was blown, and had been called by her neighbors as a kind and caring person. Her mind had been the most beautiful one he had ever seen, mirroring a coral reef in tropical waters. Just the memories of the colors alone was enough to give him a fond pause. Whenever he had gotten close to breaking past her defenses, the reef would become more beautiful and distracting, the sea flowers more brilliant, the fish more flashy. As it turned out, the kind caring woman had been exiled from Iwa for preying on many of the men and boys there. She had been too powerful to kill, so they had sent her to Konoha on a long term mission, where she had secretly been preying on the unknowing men here.

Uzumaki's mindscape was not beautiful in any stretch of the imagination. Inoichi looked up at the dark grey jagged ceiling, resisting the urge to crouch. He was in a small hot cave, an incredibly humid one, with his scalp close to scraping the rocky ceiling. He was closed in on all sides except before him, where three black holes remained, all about the same size- too small. He frowned. Inside the mind of children did not normally look like this- the mind of a child was much more chaotic, disorderly, much less organized. The mind always mirrored the child's present state of mind- whether they were happy or sad, angry or pensive. A cave, was not something he expected.

Uzumaki Naruto: definitely not a happy child.

And again, the name was strangely familiar, he was sure he had heard it somewhere- it was at the edge of his mind. Inoichi stepped up to the hole directly in front of him and peered into the pitch black darkness that seemed to emanate from it. He could see nothing beyond a foot. He moved to the one on the right, then the left, gazing in with the same results. Interesting. He would have to ask later if Kakashi had been teaching genjutsu to his students- already this boy's mind was making traps.

Taking the hole on the left, Inoichi climbed in, his shoulders grazing the sides, testing for claustrophobia, clearly. There was no telling where the hole would lead, perhaps a dead end- perhaps the entrance would close behind him and he would have to cancel the jutsu and start over. But he was confident that he would be able to crack through this child's defenses; he had worked on much more dangerous people, and this boy would not be a challenge. He was a favor for a fellow jounin.

It was the smell that hit him first, a rank, sour smell, the kind similar to that of a battlefield, after the initial slaughter had taken place. Inoichi stopped, squinting into the darkness as he attempted to crawl forward on his elbows, face twisted in a grimace as the smell got stronger. He'd obviously chosen the right hole...

A sound came from the darkness beyond him, a scuffling sound of something coming. Inoichi stopped moving and waited, gazing into the darkness- and though the stench increased, he was too curious to cancel the jutsu.

He was breathing out of his mouth by the time whatever it was reached him. At first, he could only make out dingy blond hair- then, a naked child slithered face down toward him, the rancid smell seeming to hit its peek, making his stomach roll. An inner manifestation of the Uzumaki kid? Less than four feet from him, the kid lifted his head, and Inoichi could only stare as the twisted face greeted him, a face not belonging to the boy. The mouth was split from ear to ear, revealing sharp yellow teeth. The eyes were too large for the face, leaking blood as they seemed about to pop from its head. A misshapen hand- half claw -half fingers reached out for him, and the Yamanaka slapped it away, clearly out of reflex alone.

The boy/creature spoke as it withdrew the appendage.

"This is not your place, Intruder. It belongs to Us. Do you want to stay?" the voice came out breathy, almost weak.

"I am not here to cause you any harm," he said to the boy's mental defense. "I am here to help you." And he was, for this sad little boy with the disturbingly familiar name was a ninja of Hidden Leaf, and he would not turn aside knowing one needed his help. Something flashed through the misshapen face, an almost incredulous look before a hissing laugh escaped the wide mouth, and the bizarre arm shot forward again and grabbed him by the wrist. Inoichi did not stop it this time.

"You do not recognize us," the boy/creature said as it began moving back down the hole, pulling Inoichi along with it. "You are not knowing us by face and name, but we will have with you, a reunion like none other." He did not fight- he needed to be pulled deeper into the boy's psyche to be able to gauge how damaged mentally the boy was. Even if the unease he felt was continuing to grow. "And like the days of a tree, so shall your pain be, and we shall sup upon it."

Suddenly the tunnel gave way beneath them, completely startling the seasoned ninja, and he tried to grab something- a ledge-anything, but there was only the inky darkness and the boy/creature. They both descended down into nothingness. And still he did not cancel the jutsu. Ground came suddenly and unforgiving, making Inoichi's legs crumble beneath him with a pained grunt. He quickly stumbled to his feet, racing to gather his bearings as he spied the boy/creature crouching in front of him, large red eyes focused on the grey ground. A whimper came from behind him, and he turned to spy another child, this one looking exactly like Uzumaki, drawn up in a ball, red-rimmed blue eyes focused beyond them. Inoichi turned to see what the object of the boy's terror was, and came to notice the large multitude of eyes watching hm from the darkness- hundreds of them, all different shapes, sizes, colors, all focused on him. He felt naked, exposed- he felt an alien awareness about those many eyes.

"Nichi, Nichi, Nichi," the boy/creature whined, and the hairs raised on the back of the jounin's neck as he turned his attention back to it.

"_What did you call me_?" he whispered harshly as the wide mouth began to shrink, returning to a normal size, but pouty, like a woman's. The bloody eyes turned a stormy grey, the grimy dull blond hair turning rich and flowing. The boy/creature was no longer- it was now a woman, a woman he hadn't seen for twelve years actually. Yamanaka Aiga, his older sister, who had died in battle fighting the Kyuubi.

_Impossible_.

She crawled toward him, naked, her face twisted in pain. "Nichi, my sunflower. Why haven't you saved me?"

It was too impossible. How could this boy have known Aiga to bring up a manifestation of her? He'd have been a mere baby- or not even born yet. She reached out to him with familiar calloused hands. "It hurts so much here, Nichi," she sobbed. "Every second feels like an eternity." Tears streamed down her face, her beautiful grey eyes begging him. Inoichi took a pained step back, his hands coming up to cancel the jutsu- but his wide eyes could not look away from her. "Please don't leave!" she gasped, her eyes falling on his hands. "Please don't leave me with him! I did my duty to Konoha, for the Clan. Please save me Inoichi!"

Inoichi's mouth opened, from what?he wanted to say to his sister- no- to the manifestation, that is until a giant, red, nine tailed fox appeared behind her. He cried out in shock as a clawed paw dropped down on his sister and pulled her closer to it while she screamed her brother's name.

The demonic eyes of the Kyuubi bored into his own as it spoke. "**THEY ARE ALL MINE**." And as it said this, other voices joined Aiga; he saw fellow ninja, all KIA, appear from beneath the many tails.

"Yamanaka!" Nara Hachiuma, still thirteen years old, waved to him desperately, attempting to reach him with a face lined with pain, but was shoved aside by Jien, a man he had shared a few sake's with on many occasions.

"Inoichi!" his face too was lined with such agony. "Help me! Save me!"

"Yamanaka-san!" a Hyuuga crawled over from behind one of the many tails.

"Help-"

"Please-"

"It hurts so much," Aiga's voice rose above them all, though it was barely a whisper. "Being here hurts so much."

A bellowing cackle of laughter filled his ears and he gazed up numbly at the Kyuubi. Now he knew why the name Uzumaki was so familiar to him. The jinchuuriki.

"**THEY"RE ALL MINE**," the Fox crowed. Aiga gave a screech, and Inoichi saw that the fox's paw was crushing her.

"Aiga!" he cried, leaping forward as her eyes were pushed from her head. He howled in horror just as a pain blossomed through him, and light flooded the dark hell.

He should have known something was wrong the moment Inoichi's hand began to tremble where it was buried in the limp boy's hair. Then there was the sweat and overall pallor of his face- but Kakashi had figured he was a seasoned ninja- he knew how to handle himself. And even though it was taking longer than he expected, and Naruto's very light body was starting to feel a bit heavy, he endured. It was stressful, being on alert and not being able to move. Though the compound was as silent as a grave, he half expected more not-dead Uchiha's to show up. His clone had done a quick search of the compound, but had come up with nothing. The katana was the only thing left behind.

A strange sound was coming from Naruto's mouth, a creepy sound, that at first he did not recognize, until it manifested itself as laughter. Naruto was _laughing_. He'd only seen the boy smile once, a small feeble thing that it was, so for actual laughter to be coming from the kid sent chills up and down his spine. And then Inoichi gave a chilling howl.

Kakashi jerked his student away from Inoichi's hand, and the man staggered back, tripping on the landing steps behind him and falling on his backside. Naruto writhed in his arms, his laughter becoming more erratic as he struggled against the shinobi's arms.

"Inoichi!" Kakashi called, staring at the pale man sitting on the steps, eyes wide and frozen on nothing. This had been a mistake- he should have let sleeping dogs lie. Blunt teeth sank into his right forearm, startling the jounin into releasing his student. Naruto staggered forward before running up the steps and into the main house, chaotic laughter following him in.

Kakashi moved over to the pale jounin and kneeled before him so that they were face to face. The blond looked like he had come from the horrors of battle. "Inoichi." he snapped his fingers to gain the man's attention, and it seemed to partially work, for the man seemed to focus on him. But the expression did not fade.

"He has them," he whispered. "He has them all..."

"What?" Kakashi snapped his fingers again as Inoichi seemed to lose focus again. "Who has who?"

He seemed to focus then, eyes sharpening. His hands reached out and gripped Kakashi's shoulders with alarming strength

"Kyuubi! You remember Hachiuma? Aiga, my sister? All the others who were devoured by the Fox? The Kyuubi has them inside there with him!"

Kakashi stood up abruptly, backing away from the other jounin, heart pounding.

"All this time! All this time he has been torturing them-"

"Wait Inoichi," Kakashi cut in as the blond got to his feet, color returning to his flesh, righteous fury beginning to rise. "This could simply be a trick-"

"She called me by my _childhood pet name._ No one outside my family knew it, and that boy surely couldn't have- he was but a mere babe when she was killed. The Fox has them Kakashi! Our friends, my sister...And I bet my life on this being the reason behind your student's mental problems." Inoichi gave a sudden wild laugh. "Uzumaki Naruto- the jinchuuriki boy. Why hadn't I remembered?" the laughter faded and angry eyes turned his way. "Why didn't you warn me of who he was?"

Truthfully, it disturbed him that everyone had seemed to have forgotten Naruto- at least they should have recognized his last name! Kakashi shook his head. "If what you say is to be believed, then we need to notify the Hokage of the situation immediately and bring Naruto to him." He looked over the jounin's shoulder at the house where his tormented student had fled...man he wasn't looking forward to retrieving him.

Yamanaka seemed to have completely gathered his bearings judging by the set of his shoulders and the rather determined look on his face as his eyes darted about the eerily silent compound. "But where does the Uchiha fit into this?" he muttered before disappearing in a swirl of leaves.

Kakashi carefully walked up the steps and into the main house, senses alert as the strong scent of cleanser hit him. The place was as silent as the grave and almost as dark. He headed in the direction he knew Sasuke's room was, heading up the stairs and halting at the top. Down the hall, in front of the bedroom door lay Naruto, face down. He quickly moved to his student's side and turned him over, grimacing at the bloody face that greeted him. He sighed and brushed some hair from his face before carefully picking him up and heading for the front door.

Nabeshin followed the jounin out of the house but stopped on the steps, watching along with the other Uchiha as the man made his way out of the compound with Naruto in his arms. He turned to the woman with the baby- Yura, if he remembered correctly. "I appreciate the warning earlier but it would have been nice _if you had told us sooner!" _he ended with a shout, and the dead baby began to cry.. Yura flinched and moved away.

Nabeshin would have punched something if it would do any damage, but instead gave a deep sigh, hanging his head back and staring up at the clear sky. Inoichi...they had been friends in their younger days, off and on. He hadn't wanted the man to see him again- this could interfere with his plans. With another sigh he followed after Hatake, needing to know where he was taking the boy.

It was to no surprise that they arrived at the hospital, and the Hokage was waiting for them, along with, to his surprise, Jiraiya, the Toad Sannin. Inoichi was also there, looking fidgety.

"I have a room prepared for him," the wizened man said, turning down the hall. Before Hatake could follow, three medics came up to him with a stretcher, and he carefully laid his limp student down on it. As they moved after the Hokage, one took out a pair of scissors and quickly began to cut away Naruto's bloody sweater, then quickly wiped his bloody face. All this was done before they even reached the room the Hokage had set up. They carefully transferred him over to the bed, and Nabeshin could see the blond more clearly without the hooded sweater that was always drowning him. He grimaced. The boy was as emaciated as he remembered, this skin peppered with bruises. The medics paused briefly, no doubt not expecting this, before they quickly moved into action, grabbing a saline drip and I.V, quickly hooking up a vein.

"What happened?" This from Jiraiya, and Nabeshin saw the shock in his eyes as he stared at the boy..

The Hokage sighed. "Naruto hasn't been...well..."

"What do you mean? Hasn't he been getting any financial aid?" The Sannin was starting to look angry. "Who's been watching him? What orphanage has he been at?"

A medic came in with a series of medical devices, and began to prepare Naruto for an NG tube.

"Naruto hasn't been in an orphanage since he was four."

Jiraiya's face darkened like a thunder cloud, making the medics nervous as one tipped Naruto's head back and the other began to carefully insert the tube up one nostril.. "Then who's been taking care of him?"

They finished tubing the kid up and taped the tube to his nose...Nabeshin could only imagine how Naruto would respond to this one once he awakened, and it seemed the Hokage was thinking along the same line.

"Would it be safe to sedate him?" The old man asked one of the medics. "He's not the type to come to...happily..."

The medic looked at him, then down at the boy. "Perhaps a very mild one," he conceded, looking at the second medic, who nodded and quickly left the room. "It's probably for his own good. His body not only shows signs of malnutrition, but also sleep deprivation. He could use the rest." The medic then left, passing the returning medic who injected drugs into Naruto's saline drip.

"Should keep him out for a few hours," the medic mumbled, bowing to the Hokage. "Call us if there is something you need."

Silence returned as the medic left- the Toad Sannin was pinching the bridge of his nose, obviously in irritation. "So tell me why no one was watching Minato's son?"

Nabeshin watched as all ninja in the room cringed, including Inoichi, who was leaning against the far wall, arms crossed over his chest.

"Naruto does not want to be around anyone, let alone allow someone to take care of him." The Hokage replied, eyes going distant for a moment.

"There is Sasuke," Kakashi murmured gently, his troubled eye on the tube that was feeding nutrients into his student.

"Who is Sasuke?" Jiraiya inquired, pulling out a chair and dragging it to Naruto's bedside. He pulled down the thin sheet that covered the genin's body, grimacing at the sight of how thin it was. He leaned forward and touched the seal around the navel of Naruto's slightly concave stomach with some chakra. Nabeshin came closer to see the seal himself. It was an eight trigram seal, a particularly good one, though it gave him the chills to see it.

"The seal allows for some of the Kyuubi's chakra to bleed into Naruto's pathways," the Toad Sannin pointed to the upper and lower seals. " While keeping the Fox contained." He shook his white head. "It's as stable as it could be."

"I don't understand," Inoichi moved from the wall, agitation humming about him. Nabeshin moved from the bed and stood in front of Inoichi, peering into his eyes. The man was still shaken it seemed, his pupils slightly enlarged, barely holding himself together. "If the seal is working properly, then why is the Fox still in contact with the boy?" he wiped a line of sweat running down his temple. "And what of Aiga and the others?"

Jiraiya sent him a puzzled look. "Aiga?"

"Aiga was- _is_ my sister. She was eaten by the Kyuubi that day,. But when I went into Uzumaki's mind, she was there. They all were!"

The Hokage whipped his head around and stared incredulously at the jounin as Nabeshin moved away, turning to stare at the unconscious boy.

_They devour souls, _Fugaku's words came back to him. Nabeshin's expression soured as he crouched in a corner farthest from them, near black eyes watching.

"Are you sure of this?" Sandaime demanded

Inoichi nodded. "The Demon has them captive along with himself."

The old man turned horrified eyes onto the boy. "I cannot begin to imagine the mental torture this boy goes through hourly, though I have been privy to much of its effects over the years."

"He cannot participate in the semi-finals like this," Hatake stated, looking at the Hokage, and Nabeshin's face twisted. "I'm surprised he even made it this far..."

The Hokage nodded. "I will have to withdraw him from the Exam."

A hasty decision, Nabeshin thought with a groan. Naruto was not going to appreciate this- though he imagined the boy was not going to appreciate a lot of things once the drugs wore off...like being in a hospital. That was bound to test the blond's sanity in so many ways, ways that Nabeshin didn't want to be around to witness, especially if it was taken out on him like it was on that broomstick.

Of course there was also the revelation that within his body lay the tormented souls of fellow ninja- even more, the thought that perhaps several Uchiha may also be there. His mind ran over those who went missing during the fight against the Fox. Akio, Daiki, Gorou...those were a few that he could remember searching for in the aftermath. Were they in there?

"Now who is Sasuke again?" Jiraiya asked.

"Uchiha Sasuke. The one who survived the Massacre."

Jiraiya turned flat, cold eyes on them. "You left him with Orochimaru's latest target?"

The Hokage shrugged. "He's been with Naruto for six years- long before Orochimaru set his sights on him. Sasuke is the only one he trusts- I'm afraid I was lucky enough to get through the door." He looked at Jiraiya. "Perhaps there is a way to modify the seal-" he glanced over at Inoichi. "Maybe a way to free our shinobi?"

Jiraiya stared pensively at the boy. "I wouldn't dare tamper with it until further investigation...Why is he so thin? If he's been living with the Uchiha, there should be enough for both of them to eat well."

The Hokage just sighed some more and pulled out his pipe. "That is a discussion for another night. In the meantime, tell me about this Nabeshin character that is supposed to be dead."

"An old friend of mine," Inoichi said grimly, "Or as much of a friend an Uchiha could be to someone outside of the Clan. He was also part of the Konoha Military Police if I remember correctly-"

Oh yes, and he had been given hell for it on too many occasions

"He was killed by Itachi- I'm positive of it, because I saw his body just before it was cremated. But then, there he was, talking with Uzumaki, same as the day before he died."

"Did he say anything?" Jiraiya asked. Inoichi looked over at Kakashi.

"He was talking about waiting for Sasuke to wake up before Naruto tried to kill someone- who, I'm not sure." Kakashi's eye moved back to Naruto. "He was a clone, that much we know for sure. The question is, is it really the Uchiha, or a clone _henged_ to look like him? And why? Why him? Why not henge another Uchiha?"

"Is the Uchiha kid awake yet?" Jiraiya asked. Kakashi shook his head. "Then we'll have to wait until either one of these boys wake up to find out more."

"Don't wait for Naruto," Kakashi replied flatly. "He doesn't talk to anyone other than Sasuke. We'll have to wait for the Uchiha to wake up to ask any questions."

Nabeshin got to his feet and passed through the wall, making his way out of the hospital and out into the village. Things were getting more complicated.

He returned to consciousness slowly- almost reluctantly, because he was warm, and the bed was soft and cozy, and he didn't particularly care to leave it. He turned over onto his side, nestled in, but squinted- there was too much light inside of the room, it shown through his eyelids, making it hard to return to that comfortable darkness. He wasn't used to their room being so bright. Had Naruto removed the newspaper from the windows? Or were they open?

"Relax," Sasuke slurred, grabbing the warm blanket engulfing him and pushing it off, exposing his skin to the cold air. He groaned, but knew he had to start moving before his blond roommate had an aneurism. "I'll fix the windows," he slipped off the bed, feet getting caught in the sheets, making him stagger forward. His eyes shot open and he grabbed onto the stand next to the bed, blinking rapidly into the increasingly unfamiliar room.

The room was far from his own, being that it was a hospital room, empty but for a bed, and stand with a pitcher of water, and an I.V. stand next to it. The window was bright and wide open, with a perfect view of the Hokage's Monument within its sight. He rubbed the grit from his eyes and staggered over to the window, pulling the curtains closed so that gloom entered the room. Then he sat on the edge of the bed and tried to gather his wits about him. How had he ended up in the hospital again?

Sealing. Kakashi-sensei was supposed to have put a seal over the one Orochimaru had given him. Sasuke got up and moved to the mirror, turning his head to the side to see his neck, touching the spot where the seal was with a bit of chakra. The seal showed up, but with a circling seal around it. Was the jounin successful?

"Fuuja Houin," Kakashi said, making the genin jump, and he turned a glare at the man in the doorway. "That's the name of the seal I put on top of the Heaven Seal. Hopefully it will work."

Sasuke rubbed his neck, which felt a bit sore- actually, he felt sore all over. "How long have I been out?"

Kakashi-sensei shrugged. "A few days."

A few days. What kind of trouble could Naruto get into in 'a few days?' Sasuke's eyes darted about, searching for some clothes. No doubt, Naruto hadn't eaten anything in the last few days, and hadn't been training for the next round- wait- Had Naruto even _won_ his round at the Prelims?

He looked at his sensei. "What about the Exam? Did Naruto already have his fight? Who was he up against?" As he shot questions at the man, he searched the room for clothing, finding his shirt and shorts in a cabinet- cleaned and stitched. He shrugged out of the hospital clothing and pulled on his own as Kakashi-sensei spoke.

"Naruto fought against Inuzuka Kiba, yes he won, and the semi-finals are less than a month from now- which means we have less time to train-where are you going?"

Sasuke was attempting to move past the man. "I have to go back to the compound and make sure Naruto is okay," he leveled a glare on the man when he still didn't move from the doorway.

"Naruto's not there," Kakashi-sensei replied calmly, his eye watching him closely. Sasuke's eyes narrowed,

"Where is he? Sasuke demanded, feeling nervous of a sudden. Naruto didn't particularly like to go outside if he could help it.

"Two floors down- room 101," Kakashi was still watching him intently as Sasuke's mind began to speed through possibilities. The fight between Naruto and dog boy must have been pretty bad if it had the hooded blond laid up in the hospital. Naruto...in a hospital...Sasuke took a step forward again, and this time Kakashi-sensei moved out of his way. He traveled down the hall and took a lift two floors down, the jounin standing silently behind him. When he arrived at Naruto's room, his eyes immediately moved to the corners, expecting to see Naruto huddled in one of them, but no- he was in the bed.

"_What the hell?" _The Uchiha blanched at the sight of his roommate, rushing over to the bed and halting, managing to keep his mouth from dropping open as he stared at the tube filled blond There were needles going into his veins at the crook of his arms, a tube taped to his nose- he was completely exposed, no hooded sweater to hide his face and arms. His hair had been brushed back from his face, his skin...had some color...

"What happened?" He demanded. He was going to kill Inuzuka the next time he saw him. His eyes fell on the strap across the blond's torso, ankles, and wrists. "Why is he tied up?"

"Naruto definitely isn't a morning person, or a person who wakes up well at all." Sasuke sent him a flat look. "He keeps trying to escape every time he regains consciousness- pulled out the tubes twice already, so they've decided to keep him mildly sedated and strapped. He's official been labeled a 'problem patient' by some of the nurses."

That sounded just like Naruto. Sasuke sighed and pulled the chair nearby toward the bed and sat down, glancing over at the wide open windows. He'd have to get some newspaper for those. "What happened with his fight with Inuzuka?"

Kakashi moved to the other side of the bed. "The fight was short- Naruto won and he wasn't badly injured. Can't say the same for Inuzuka's dog, Akamaru. Naruto cut off one of its legs." Sasuke held back the proud smirk that was trying to grow across his pale face. "It was a clean cut though, so they've managed to reattach it. Some physical therapy should bring the dog back to a hundred percent fighting ability."

Sasuke looked up at the jounin with a frown. "Then why is he here?"

To this, Kakashi-sensei said nothing, instead pulling his orange book out and flipping it open. Sasuke's eyes narrowed. Why didn't the jounin answer? Did he have something to do with why Naruto was in here? An alarming thought flashed through his suspicious mind. Had they taken Naruto from the compound? Did they-

"Naruto isn't going to participate in the Semi-Finals," the man said instead.

Sasuke grit his teeth, feeling hot anger run through him. "Why not?"

"Really Sasuke?" Kakashi sent him an irritated look. "Look at him. They weighed him at eighty six pounds. Eighty six. If not for the Kyuubi's chakra that bleeds through that seal, he would have had major organ failure by now, which would leave him very dead. A regular person would have died by now Sasuke."

Anger left him drained and cold, and he peered at the blond's taped face. He squinted. Naruto's complexion did look a bit rosy, and the bags under his eyes were gone. He looked better than Sasuke had ever seen him, and he had to concede- though Naruto may not like it- he could use the bed rest.

"Who is Nabeshin?"

The question came out of no where- he could not control the stiffening of his shoulders. He looked up at the jounin, who was staring at him intently. Why was he asking? Had he met Nabeshin? Did he have anything to do with why Naruto was here? Questions ran through his mind wildly. And how could he explain- explain about Naruto's ability to speak with the dead? About his clones housing one of his dead brethren? How to speak of such a sensitive subject- something that was none of the jounin's business? It was _their_ business, his and Naruto's. No one else. So he did the first thing that came to mind.

"One of my cousins. He's dead now," he replied in a clipped tone. "Why?"

Kakashi said nothing, instead putting the book away. "Let's go."

Sasuke's eyes narrowed. "Where?"

"To train, or course. I can teach you to use that Sharingan better. You have to fight Gaara, you know."

Sasuke's brows rose in surprise- he could imagine how Naruto felt about that. "Fine, let's go."

"Of course," the jounin said with a hidden smile. "After we get something in your stomach, and say hello to your _other_ teammate. You forgot to ask how her fight went. Shame on you Sasuke."

Sasuke glared.

It was an incredibly isolating feeling, not being able to talk to anyone. With both Naruto and Sasuke out of commission, he was left bodiless, almost adrift, watching events happen. The ninja had combed the compound, looking for signs of habitation other than the two boys, and finding nothing other than his katana, which to his chagrin, they had taken for examination.

The other Uchiha did not talk to Nabeshin, they lamented over their loss, some stuck in a constant state of terror or despair. He did not want to confer with Fugaku; he was still pissed at the man. There were other ghosts outside of the compound, many in fact, most fallen ninja from a war or two- several he actually knew. But they all seemed disconnected with what was happening around them except for whatever it was that had caused them their death, or a loved one. Currently he was watching an older man follow a teenaged girl around the market place. The girl was with a youth about her age- they were clearly on a date, and the older man was occasionally glaring at the object of her affection.

A dead pervert? He had thought for a moment, but he realized they had the same nose and eyes, and she must be his daughter. He followed her everywhere, walked through people and objects without noticing them- a single-mindedness that seemed to plague everyone but him. What made him so different?

The older man stopped suddenly, eyes turning to look off in another direction intently, and Nabeshin followed his eyes, looking into the crowd of living people. They all seemed the same, an assortment of colors and life, moving about their business- people began to move out of the way, a look of alarm or disgust on their faces. Out of them came...Naruto?

The blond's black hood was down, for one, revealing a thin, dirty face, with limp dirty hair. In one hand was a sheathed katana, and on his dirty face was a very eery smile. The eyes were still a beacon of red light- but for some reason, it seemed even worse to look upon. But wasn't Naruto in the hospital? As he came near, Nabeshin immediately noticed the sweater- the black one... Naruto did not have that one anymore.

"A clone," he breathed, and the clone paused as it was about to pass beyond him, turning those beacons of red light on him. Nabeshin flinched, but spoke. "How come you're still here?"

The clone tilted its head to the side, smile remaining, beacons focused on him. "Why are we _not_ still here? we are to observe, and observing we have been, and observing we will continue to do." There was a smell emanating from the clone-dried blood. Something was seriously not right with this clone.

"Will...will you observe a message for me to Sasuke? He needs to be very careful from here on out- there are some strange Anbu in the compound looking about. Something about these ones doesn't seem right. Both he and Naruto need to tread softly."

"Observing," the clone replied, seeming unaware of the looks he was getting from the villagers. It _did_ seem as if he was talking to himself. The clone continued on, seeming undisturbed by Nabeshin's words. He began to wonder if Sasuke would ever get his message at all.

Damn he needed a body. But he wouldn't _dare_ try to take that one.

It irked him, that Kakashi-sensei could wield the Sharingan better than him, a pure blooded natural born Uchiha, while he- having acquired it from a deceased Teammate, had no relation at all. He had asked the jounin how he had gotten the eye, and the man's answer had been short and to the point. It was as Naruto surmised- it had been transferred over. Interestingly enough, the eye was always activated, and pulled much chakra from the man if not covered.

Sasuke had already been pushed to his own limits with the Sharingan, able to only keep it up for ten minutes before it deactivated, leaving him drained and low on chakra as he limped back to the compound. And yet he could not hold back the smirk on his face. Kakashi-sensei had shown him an intriguing technique earlier- the Chidori. He glanced down at his stiff, reddened right palm, and he knew, that by the time the Semi-Finals arrived, he would achieve it. He was determined to, even if it drained him faster than using the Sharingan did- even if, by what the jounin had said, he would only be able to execute it once.

Sasuke opened the gates to the compound and slipped through, a strange mixture of gladness and oppression coming over him as he took in the sight of the empty compound. It still surprised him every once in a while, that he had actually returned here.

He halted, thoughts abruptly stopping when his eyes fell on the porch of the main house. Was that- Naruto standing there? How had he gotten out of the hospital? Sasuke began walking quickly up to the house- but slowed down again as he got close enough to properly see him, and noticed many of the things that rang bells of alarm through him. First, he was wearing that sweater Kaori had given him, which he knew the blond no longer had. Second, he had the hood down, which he rarely ever allowed, and his hair looked oily and grey with dirt. And he was just standing there, his back to the door.

"Hey," Sasuke said, not too loudly, because the creepy grin that was turned on him was rather...disquieting. The eyes, though smudged with weariness and red-rimmed, seemed unusually bright- happy looking. Naruto didn't do happy- happy wasn't something he normally felt. At least- Sasuke had never seen the blond truly happy. Oh there were the times that Naruto got those crazy eyes and smile- but he knew that wasn't something natural to him. He knew about the Fox. But this Naruto, looked happy. And he was holding their katana against his chest. "Are those..."

"We observed them," the familiar raspy voice replied as he came up to the porch. Sasuke immediately covered his nose- the smell coming from this...Naruto, was awful. He smelled like a dead animal. The Naruto handed the blades to him. "You left them behind."

A chill. Why were the clones Naruto made a week ago still active? "How-" he began, but the clone cut him off, taking a step toward him. Sasuke took a step back.

"Nabeshin wanted us to observe that there are Anbu in the compound looking for him."

Sasuke's eyes darted around warily. "You can see him?" The clone took another step forward. Sasuke took another back, stifling a yelp when his back hit the door.

"We have observed, that Kakashi and the one named Yamanaka Inoichi put us in the hospital." The smell was awful, but Sasuke forgot all about it upon those words.

"What? How?"

"An ambush," the clone said. "They saw us talking to Nabeshin and attacked."

What? How could they have seen a gh- but wait...Nabeshin had been in one of Naruto's clones the last time he had seen him, and he was likely henged as himself. And when he no doubt dispelled the clone he was occupying, everything he had done was returned to Naruto...and any other clone. Sasuke's eyes narrowed. Who knew Nabeshin by sight? Had Kakashi or this Inoichi, known him when he was alive? Had he said anything incriminating? And how _dare_ they attack Naruto!

"Do they know anything?" he demanded, and the clone continued to smile.

"They are observing, as we are observing. But they know very little." The clone took another step forward, until it was right up in his face- though Naruto was a few inches shorter than he. The smile had completely disappeared. "We are all, observing Sasuke." he was being stared at deeply, and for some reason, those words sounded like a warning...or a threat. He found himself clutching the katana to his chest like a little girl. The cheerful smile returned to the clone's face as it stepped away and moved off the porch.

"What have you been killing?" Sasuke asked suddenly. The clone continued to walk, glancing back at him as it rounded a corner.

"Many things..." its raspy voice drifted back to him as it rounded a corner and disappeared.

The room was comfortably stuffy, familiar, with all his things in it- but Sasuke could not sleep. He lay on his back, staring at the ceiling for hours into the night, but knew it was useless. He wasn't used to sleeping alone. He wasn't used to an empty room.

Sasuke sighed, sitting up in bed, throwing his feet over the side and rubbing his neck where both seals were. Why bother trying? He got up, pulling on some pants and grabbing the stack of neatly piled newspaper and tape, stuffing it under one arm as he left the house. Outside the night was cool, but slightly humid, a calm night, probably with many anbu lurking around. He did not doubt the word of the clone- he believed he was being watched- he simply couldn't see his watchers. What if they were the ones that conspired against his clan?

An angry thought. Sasuke stepped into the brightly lit hospital, surprised to see people walking about three in the morning- patients, nurses and doctors alike. He made it to Naruto's room without being harassed and went inside, eyes adjusting to the darkness. Naruto was still strapped and tubed, still obviously drugged into oblivion. Sasuke shook his head as he moved to the windows and quietly newspapered them up for Naruto, for when they stopped drugging him and he was completely lucid again. Satisfied that there were no cracks or spaces in between, Sasuke set the remaining newspaper and tape aside and pulled the chair next to Naruto's bed. He slumped down in it, curling up with his legs to his chest, and looked at his sore hand. Soon, perhaps even tomorrow, he would perfect the Chidori. Soon, Naruto would wake and he would get the full story of what had happened. Soon.

Several minutes later, he was asleep, unaware of the ghost standing behind him.

TBC

I had several issues with kakashi's and inoichi's combined POV. Sorry about that.


End file.
